Wrath of Fire
by Xorncon - Number 0
Summary: Danzo became the third Hokage instead of Hiruzen, and started a regime to bring the shinobi world to his own twisted way of thinking. Danzo and his many allies are opposed by a group of rogues that fight to bring back the Will of Fire to the world.
1. The Wrath of Fire

The Village Hidden in the Leaves, a village renowned for its ruthlessness and evil ways. A village under the rule of the third Hokage: Danzo. Danzo obtained the title of Hokage when the second Hokage's successor, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was killed in action before they could even make it back to the village on a mission during the first Great War. Danzo has since then been the Hokage, and has brought his village to new heights. At the same time, the village has lost many morals, only valuing winning and power. Other than that they showed no mercy to their enemies, often killing criminals and placing bounties for 'wanted dead' only. The sheer ruthlessness of the village has often dissuaded many of the other villages from attacking, let alone dealing, with the village. The Will of Fire was replaced by Danzo's own Wrath of Fire. Instead of believing in the next generation and leaving behind a good example as the first and second Hokage would've wanted, Danzo instead put more training and emphasis on winning and striking down your opponent in cold blood, and that the village's power rested above all else. This turned many rising shinobi into cold, heartless killers that made even the most fearsome of shinobi tremble with fear.

One young student who seemed to be a model example of Danzo's new ideals was a child by the name of Orochimaru. The pale young man, along with his two teammates Jiraiya and Tsunade, were at the top of their class in every field. But something about Orochimaru told Danzo that he'd be an exemplary example of the village's beliefs. Unlike Tsunade and Jiraiya. Tsunade was too soft, and weak. She was the granddaughter of the first Hokage, and like him shared his ideals and beliefs. There was a time when Danzo also thought that way, but after the second Hokage didn't name him the third Hokage, Danzo lost all respect for the two former Kages. Jiraiya was something else. He hardly practiced any of Danzo's traditions, and he seemed to possess the Will of Fire, almost as much as Sarutobi himself. After Danzo's various attempts to try and convert Jiraiya, the white haired lad found a way to escape by learning from the great toad sages. Orochimaru however, seemed to idolize and worship everything that Danzo stood for, but not necessarily the man himself. Because of this, Danzo became Orochimaru's unofficial teacher.

As the years passed, more wars emerged. The second shinobi war brought fame to many of Konoha's shinobi. In a battle with Hanzo, Amegakure's leader, Jiraiya, Orochimaru and Tsunade were given the name of 'The Legendary Sannin.' Not only that, but Tsunade was praised for her medical ninjutsu, managing to a variety of poisons from the shinobi of Sunagakure, but she abandoned the village after she lost her brother and her fiancé. Another shinobi rose to fame, for being almost as powerful as the Sannin themselves. Konoha's White Fang, Sakumo Hatake, had never been one to follow the traditions that Danzo had given. The White Fang had always put his comrades above everything, including the mission. Still, the man's abilities were indeed incredible, so killing or punishing the man would be wasteful. Orochimaru was the only one of the Sannin to return to the village, informing of Tsunade's abandonment after the loss of Dan and Nawaki. Jiraiya however just stayed in Amegakure to train three brats, and would return once he finished.

However, when Jiraiya returned he would prove to be more of an annoyance than was bargained for. Jiraiya's beliefs would be passed onto his new student from Konoha: Minato Namikaze. A young boy with blonde hair and blue eyes, and the abilities of a natural prodigy. It's almost as if the boy was born to be a ninja. He absorbed Jiraiya's teachings like a sponge. Both he and Jiraiya were fiercely loyal to the village, but just like Sakumo Hatake their ideals were a threat to Danzo. Changing the village this late in the game would be a huge mistake. However, Danzo knew that those three had no intentions of overthrowing the village. Still, if the Will of Fire went from those three and progressed further into future generations, the village will surely suffer for it.

Once again, fate seemed to be on Danzo's side as the last mission the White Fang went on, he chose to save his friends instead of completing the mission. The mission was a failure, and everyone, including the people that Sakumo saved resented him for failing the mission. He committed suicide. Not only that, but Tsunade had lost her little brother, and her lover and left the village for good. Jiraiya was still around Amegakure, training some brats according to Orochimaru. That only lasted for a few years though, and Jiraiya came back, upset that Sakumo and Tsunade were gone. It seems as if Jiraiya is the only fool left to oppose Danzo's ideals.

Sakumo Hatake lived on through his son Kakashi: a young man who bore a striking resemblance to his father. He worshiped the ground Sakumo walked on, and his death caused Kakashi to live strictly by the shinobi code. Something Danzo used to quickly manipulate the young prodigy. Danzo personally molded the boy into a mini version of himself: cold, unattached, strict, and loyal to the village. Kakashi learned to bury his emotions and he became like an extension of Danzo's will.

Time passed so quickly. Minato was already a grown man, taking his own team of Genin which included Kakashi, an Uchiha, and a medical ninja. Danzo made an alliance with Amegakure's leader: Hanzo the Salamander. It was part of a long term plan that the ruthless Kage had in store. The Land of Wind's Daimyo was giving more missions to Konoha, thus causing Sunagakure to run low on funds. Danzo met with the third Kazekage, offering to open up trade with the village. The third Kazekage agreed willingly. He and Danzo had many similarities: they both valued their village more than anything, both were deceiving and treacherous. That was the exact reason that Danzo sent Orochimaru, his most trusted protégé, to keep an eye on the village.

Minato and Jiraiya were little more than annoying flies, but they presented no immediate threat. Danzo still kept a weary eye on the duo, and then on Minato's student: Obito Uchiha. Luckily the newly appointed Jonin of the team, Kakashi, took up on that mission. Jiraiya wandered to and from the village at his leisure, which irritated Danzo. However, the white haired sage knew that Danzo wouldn't do anything to him, due to the fact that Jiraiya was only useful because of his abilities. One day however, Jiraiya left and never came back for unknown reasons. The only one to challenge Danzo's ideals now was Minato.

Orochimaru returned to the village one day, informing Danzo of everything that happened in the Suna. Orochimaru met and befriended a young puppet master with incredible abilities far beyond any of Suna's puppeteers before him that went by the same of Sasori. The third Kazekage later caught onto the treachery from Konoha. Orochimaru with the help of Sasori, assassinated the Kazekage to avoid a war from breaking out. Danzo commended Orochimaru for his actions, not only did he prevent a war, but now Danzo can put someone more loyal in the seat of power in Sunagakure. Danzo ruled his village, and practically the country, and now he has allies in Amegakure, linking to the Land of Wind, which was now without a leader.

Orochimaru returned to Suna, informing the people that their Kazekage planned to attack their allies in order to gain more power. Normally the people of the village wouldn't believe such a thing, but the village was dying. Danzo did not trade with Suna as much as he probably should of, leaving the people weak and starving. The people were tired, and willing to do whatever it took to live without worrying about food or money. No one argued when there was a proposal for Konoha's help. Many shinobi from Konoha came a few days later with food, supplies, and almost everything else the village needed. Orochimaru oversaw the village being reformed, and worked closely with his accomplice Sasori. Of course, a few shinobi loyal to the third Kazekage did not agree with allowing Konoha to aid them, and a few more radical individuals actually tried attacking the snake and the puppet master. Their attacks were unsuccessful. Due to the close ties with Orochimaru and Konoha, Sasori was a prime candidate for the seat of fourth Kazekage. However, many were convinced he was too young. They needed to be convinced.

Orochimaru and several of Danzo's shinobi disguised as Suna shinobi ran into the Land of Earth, and started burning villages, killing men and children, and doing unspeakable things to women. This would not stand, as Iwagakure soon staged an assault on the Land of Wind. Orochimaru informed Sasori of what he had done, and that if he fought back this army successfully that he would be Kazekage. Sasori led the forces of Suna admirably, and with the help of Orochimaru and Konoha, fought Iwagakure all the way back across their borders. The people were afraid during the invasion, but once they saw Sasori fighting and leading in battle, they practically swept him into the seat of Kazekage. Orochimaru returned to Konoha to deliver the news to Danzo.

The Hokage wasn't entirely pleased that Orochimaru invaded another country without asking him first, but still was glad to have Sasori as Kazekage now. However, while his actions in the Land of Earth hadn't brought Iwagakure to Konoha's doorstep, the fact that Orochimaru helped Suna certainly did. Konoha, along with the help of Amegakure, fought against Iwagakure and slaughtered all who opposed them. On top of the lost forces from the invasion in the Land of the Wind, and now trying to attack Konoha, Iwagakure was now left beaten and broken. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and Danzo immediately set out to finish the village off. Iwa fought as best as they could, but as soon as Suna offered their aid, Onoki, the third Tsuchikage surrender. Iwagakure was now at the mercy of Danzo and Sasori. While they could have did the same to Iwa that they did to Suna, Onoki was more valuable alive than dead. Unlike the tired people of Suna, Iwagakure would've retaliated if their leader died. Instead, the combined nations forced Onoki and his village to ally themselves with Sunagakure and Konoha in case of times of war, and they also had to make 'protection' payments to the two countries every year. Begrudgingly, Onoki had no choice but to accept as his village was held by the throat.

With the alliances with Hanzo of Amegakure, Sasori of Sunagakure, and now forcing Onoki of Iwagakure to join, Danzo now was one of the most dangerous, and powerful men in the world and his village was untouchable. That was, until the day of the Nine Tailed Fox attack in the Land of Fire.

The colossal demon raged throughout the country for days, killing all that stood in its path. Danzo quickly mounted a counterstrike against the Fox, which came at the cost of hundreds of shinobi lives. Danzo himself even lost his right arm and eye in battle. Were it not for the arrival of Kakashi and the young medical girl Rin, Danzo surely would've died that day. And were it not for Minato Namikaze, who made the ultimate sacrifice in sealing the fox demon's spirit within his own son at the cost of his life, the Land of Fire would have been destroyed.

The entire attack was a huge failure, which left the village vulnerable. Danzo lost one of the most promising shinobi Konoha had ever produced, lost countless shinobi, and lost his own arm and eye in battle. There were so many things that could go wrong: Iwagakure or Sunagakure could betray him and take his seat of power, one of the other nations he hadn't touched yet could attack and start a war. Why did the fox demon have to attack? It was too convenient; it had to have been planned. But who could control something like the demon fox? The Uchiha Clan. Danzo approached the Uchiha's leader: Fugaku, and demanded to know who planned the attack. Fugaku and the Uchiha clan all denied having anything to do with the fox demon attacking.

Danzo was infuriated, feeling he could do nothing against the Uchiha Clan. They were one of the strongest clans in Konoha, no, in the whole world. He couldn't fight them with one arm and one eye and nearly a third of the manpower he use to wield. Danzo ordered Kakashi, who was now chief of the ANBU, to capture Shisui and bring him forward for interrogation. After a brutal physical and mental torture given by Kakashi and Orochimaru, Shisui still told Danzo that the Uchiha did not use the fox demon to attack Konoha. In a rage, Danzo ordered Shisui be killed on the spot. Orochimaru told Danzo that he may be able to attach Shisui's arm to Danzo, as well as implant his eye into the Hokage as well. Danzo readily agreed. The procedure was successful, and Danzo now possessed his very own Sharingan. The Uchiha Clan's extermination was back on track.

Danzo, Kakashi, Orochimaru, and a few members of the ANBU moved into the Uchiha compound and killed every last person they could find. They slaughtered men and women, leaving their bodies in the streets to pour a river of crimson. The group moved to the last house: the home of the head of the clan: Fugaku. The team moved into his home, being met with the fierce gaze of Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha. Danzo showed them no mercy as he cut them both down, leaving them to lie on the floor.

The next day, Danzo told the village that the Uchiha were planning to overthrow Konoha in a violent coup. The village either believed Danzo, or was too afraid to think otherwise. An entire clan was wiped out in one night by the feared and ruthless Hokage. Later that day, Kakashi came to Danzo with some grim news. Apparently three Uchiha survived: Obito, Itachi, and Sasuke. The good news from this was that Sasuke was still in the village, and could be manipulated by Danzo as he saw fit. He put the young, traumatized boy in his own twisted version of 'therapy.' He conditioned the boy with genjutsu, physical punishment and many other cruel methods to force Sasuke Uchiha to become fanatical about Konoha, and to think that his Clan deserved to die by trying to overthrow the village. Sasuke Uchiha would become a hardened shinobi who would serve Konoha with loyalty beyond reproach.

Orochimaru came to Danzo, informing the old man of an experiment that could give Danzo even more power. It involved implanting the first Hokage's DNA into Danzo's right arm, which should give him the ability to use the secret wood style jutsu. Before Danzo could say yes, Kakashi came in with a secret book of a jutsu forbidden even amongst the Uchiha Clan. It was a genjutsu that warped reality around the user temporarily, but then the user's eyes would be closed forever and could never be reopened. Danzo quickly devised a way to kill two birds with one stone. He would take ten Sharingan, and would implant them into his new arm along with the first's DNA. He would possess the power of the Uchiha, and the power of the first Hokage. The procedure was a success, and Danzo could successfully use the first Hokage's jutsu, and he even tested Izanagi. Now Danzo had the power of the Uchiha and the first Hokage, and he had one of the last living Uchiha under his belt. Not only that, but Danzo's allegiances with Hanzo, Sasori, and Onoki remained strong. With their Jinchuriki and his together, on top of Danzo's new powers and having Orochimaru, Kakashi, and Sasuke with him, Danzo didn't see what could stop him.

But it wasn't enough for the greedy Kage.

Danzo had learned that there was a Jinchuriki that wasn't under the rule of one of the great shinobi nations. He told Hanzo of this, telling his ally it was so that he could have the Jinchuriki for his own village. Danzo only allowed Hanzo to have his own Jinchuriki to keep the fool happy. If the Hokage took it for his own, there would surely be political backlash.

As it turned out, even Hanzo having a Jinchuriki had its own backlash.

The Fourth Raikage started a war with Konoha, claiming that they were becoming too powerful in times of peace. The accusation was laughable since the Raikage was building his army during times of peace. Danzo hardly had a moment of peace without some type of war or opportunity arising. The battles between Konoha and Kumo were bloody and brutal. Unfortunately Suna was working on making sure its people survived and had food on their tables, while Iwa had to rebuild from their beating from Suna and Konoha, so they were both unavailable for war. Hanzo had his hands full with searching for the Jinchuriki of Takigakure, and having to deal with some annoying rebels that threatened his regime. Konoha had to battle Kumo fair and square in this war. However, after nearly a year of warring, the two nations decided to come to a treaty. The Head Ninja of Kumogakure showed up in Konoha to personally sign the treaty and stay in the village for a few days as a sign of their newfound peace.

This peace was violently disrupted.

Apparently the Head Ninja tried to kidnap the Hyuga heiress, Hinata Hyuga, at night and was killed by Hinata's father. Danzo was proud that Hiashi kept the secrets of his clan hidden, but Kumogakure and its Raikage were less than pleased. They were outraged at the thought that they would try to steal the Byakugan after signing the peace treaty, and demanded an eye for an eye. Hiashi was to be killed in return for losing their Head Ninja. Danzo met with the Hyuga Clan leaders, and devised a simple plan: kill Hiashi's twin brother Hizashi in his stead. It was a tough call, but Hiashi was the Clan leader, and he couldn't be killed because a backstabbing nation demanded blood. Hiashi was against the idea, but Hizashi willingly accepted and was killed the next morning. After the death of Hizashi, his son ran away from the village and was never found. Even the Hyuga Elders tried using the curse mark to trace him for a time, but eventually they could not trace it anymore. They concluded that Neji must have been killed, and with the seal on him, his Byakugan was destroyed, thus no longer allowing any enemies to learn its secrets.

By the end of this whole mess, things seemed to calm down and once again seemed to be heading Danzo's way. Hanzo had captured the Jinchuriki who was a few years than Konoha's own Jinchuriki: Naruto Uzumaki, son of Minato Namikaze. The villages of Iwa and Suna had rebuilt their power. Each of Danzo's allies had at least one Jinchuriki, the one tail, four tails, five tails, seven tails and now the nine tails. However, one unfortunate evening, Danzo was informed that Naruto was taken from the village. The Hokage was enraged and sent out countless search parties, but never caught even a trace of the boy.

Years later, Danzo still had search parties looking for Naruto, but only a few. He practically gave up hope of finding him, but better safe than sorry. Sasuke was already a Genin and was Kakashi's personal student. Orochimaru was Danzo's right hand, and he was the key link in the relationship between Konoha and Suna. Without him, Danzo wasn't so sure what the village's relationship would be like. Iwagakure surprisingly seemed to fully honor their allegiance with Danzo. Perhaps they valued power just as he did. Danzo ruled nearly the entire western half of the continent, and had no intentions of stopping there. However, he deserved a rest, as did the rest of the village.

But it seemed as if fate had no intentions of letting the old Hokage rest.

A group of united rogue ninja attacked a cargo delivery from Konoha to Suna. They killed the shinobi escorts and stole the cargo. Danzo normally would've paid no mind to such a situation, but after the same thing kept happening, he started to get annoyed. Later on, the same group of rogues boldly attacked a Konoha outpost on the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers. One Konoha shinobi survived, informing Danzo that the shinobi were skilled at sabotage, and that they must've been planning an attack for days. Danzo got the hint: someone was trying to overthrow him. With the number of shinobi that left the village, as well as the many enemies he's made, it could be any number of people or groups. Still, this would not stand. Danzo ordered all of his men and outpost to be on full alert for the possibility of an attack, not having the patience to have his peace challenged by a group of pests.

In a country just north of the Land of Fire, deep underground within the center of the country was a massive cavern, full of people walking around, setting up what would appear to be a base of operations. Within one of the back rooms, a few dark figures gathered around a long table with the map of the continent on it.

"Alright," a young man with orange hair and blue eyes piped up, "Shall we begin this meeting?" Everyone remained quite, waiting for him to continue. "Well, all of Konoha's camps, bases, and outposts are now put on full alert. Obviously, Danzo realized that he's being attacked."

"But what about the other countries," another young man with long, red hair asked. "What about Sunagakure or Amegakure?"

"They're not setting up like Konoha is Nagato. Apparently, Danzo thinks we're just after him. So, we're going to show we're out to fuck over his entire system. How'd talks with the Prajñā Group go?"

"Ah, not too bad," a giant man with long, spiky white hair replied with a shrug. "They didn't trust me at first obviously, but once I said our group was going up against Danzo, they couldn't have joined faster."

"Good, so that means we have a little extra manpower."

"Not much Yahiko, there were a little over forty ninja left. Not much when you compare it to the four armies we're up against."

"It's not like we're fighting them out in the open master Jiraiya," Yahiko snapped. "We're going to break their foundation, and show the world that Danzo and his alliances can be beaten. Once that happens, more will rally to our aid."

"Yeah, rally just like Kumo and the Raikage," a busty blonde haired woman muttered. "All of us were labeled rogues by Danzo in case if you forgot, so no real village will join us no matter what we try and say."

"Lady Tsunade is right," Nagato said. "We're going to have to do this on our own terms. If anyone else is going to join us, it'll be rogue shinobi and not entire countries."

"Well, we'll hire mercenaries and bounty hunters then," Yahiko exclaimed.

"What man is crazy enough to go up against Danzo's forces," Jiraiya asked, knowing the answer to his own question. Yahiko growled in defeat. "Listen, we've got to be patient. We just got to the point where we can start poking down the old man's defenses. You don't win wars by rushing in head first."

"I know master Jiraiya, forgive me," Yahiko replied. "So what do we do now?"

"Right now we should just worry about building our manpower a little more, then work on taking out a big target," the toad sage answered. "If we're going to poke down Danzo's defenses, we might as well poke a big hole." Yahiko nodded in agreement. "Alright, Yahiko and I will work out and try to find who else would be willing to join us. The rest of you are dismissed." The other four shinobi nodded then walked out of the room.

* * *

So…yeah…tell me what you think so far. Sorry if there was a lot of long boring back story explanation going on. I just wanted to get all of that out of the way first ^_^;

Anywho, read and review! =D


	2. The Rebellion

Nagato walked around the underground base, watching as many other shinobi dug through solid rock to build new 'rooms' for supplies and food. Everyone worked hard, and they would have to work even harder once things started to pick up.

"Nagato-san," a voice called out. The redheaded young man looked over, seeing the hyperactive, unofficial mascot of the rebels: Naruto Uzumaki. The young boy started laughing as he ran towards Nagato and then jumped on him, squeezing his arms around the redhead's body. "Hey Nagato-san, what's up?"

"Naruto, can't breathe…"

"Whoops," Naruto released Nagato who started breathing heavily to catch his breath. "So how'd the meeting go?"

"It was…" Nagato took another deep breath, finally catching wind, "Pointless."

"What'd you all talk about?" Nagato sighed with a friendly smile before continuing his walk through the cavern. Naruto quickly followed him, staring up at the older man.

"Basically we just said how we got Danzo's attention, and we need to bring a few new recruits in before we do anything else too hasty." Naruto huffed then looked ahead with his eyes narrowed.

"Stupid old man…when I get my hands I him I'm gonna get him good!" Naruto started throwing punches into the empty air as well as moving his head back and forth as if he were boxing. Nagato cracked a smirk and looked at the energetic young child.

"What makes you so sure you're going to fight Danzo? You're thirteen and he's been Hokage since master Jiraiya was a kid."

"Bah, I don't care how much older he is than the pervy sage, I'll still knock Danzo's block off! With one of these," Naruto threw a straight punch forward, "And one of those!"

"Hey, maybe you should do a little more training before you try and take on the Hokage kiddo." Naruto lowered his fists and smiled brightly up at Nagato.

"Is that an offer Nagato-san?" The redhead chuckled then ruffled Naruto's blonde hair.

"Sure, why not? Come on kid." Naruto cheered as he jumped for joy. He grabbed Nagato's sleeve and pulled him along through the cavern.

"Come on Nagato-san, you're burning daylight!"

"How can you even tell," Nagato asked hastily. Suddenly a young man with black spiky hair and orange goggles appeared upside down right in front of Naruto. The blonde jumped back and yelped with fear before he realized who it was. The man laughed amusingly as he dropped from the ceiling, flipping over and landing on his feet.

"Obito-san, that's NOT funny!"

"Oh come on, you so know it's funny," the Uchiha replied. Naruto crossed his arms and pouted, glaring at empty space. "Oh, so it's only funny when you do it to other people?"

"Hell yeah it is," Naruto snapped. "Nagato-san and I were just going to go train!"

"Oh, I can come if you want," Obito offered, looking up at Nagato. The redhead shrugged uncaringly.

"Nagato-sama," a voice called out. The three rogues turned their head, seeing an Ame rebel running up to them. "We need your help in clearing a cave-in, there are a few people trapped underneath."

"Shit, sorry Naruto," Nagato ran off, following the rogue to the accident, "we'll have to do this another time!"

Naruto opened his mouth to call after, but Nagato was too far at this point. The blonde Jinchuriki slumped his shoulders and pouted. Obito looked at Nagato then back to the pouting thirteen year old who sulked away. The spiky haired Uchiha sighed, feeling somewhat guilty. The rebels kidnapped Naruto for a number of reasons: one he was a Jinchuriki, and taking him away would give Danzo one less weapon to use. The second reason was because he was Minato Namikaze's son, and his mother Kushina Uzumaki was assassinated by Danzo's ninja for believing her to be a spy, since she wasn't even from the Land of Fire. They told Naruto about Minato, but Jiraiya explained that Minato believed in the village and the Will of Fire. The young Jinchuriki accepted it after a few weeks of brooding along with Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Obito, the three people who really knew Minato, talking to the young boy. They didn't tell Naruto about how Kushina died, for fear that his hatred would blind him, which could also release the Nine Tailed Fox spirit upon the world. Jiraiya decided he would tell Naruto when the time was right. Another reason they kidnapped Naruto, is because the young Jinchuriki hadn't been manipulated by Danzo yet. What with cleaning up the Uchiha massacre, and the war with Kumogakure, the old man didn't have a chance to manipulate Naruto yet. The rebels didn't want to condition the boy to be a mindless drone who was bent on victory like most of the shinobi in Konoha, so they let Naruto grow up his own way. As it turned out, Naruto practically wedged himself within the inner circle of the rebel's leaders.

Jiraiya had unofficially adopted Naruto, though it seemed to be more of a grandpa/grandson relationship, but still, the two were inseparable. Jiraiya became Naruto's mentor, teaching him as much as the boy possibly could. Unfortunately, Naruto wasn't quite the academic that his father was, so it took a bit longer for Naruto to learn techniques that his father learned in no time flat.

Tsunade and Naruto's relationship was more or less in contrast to his and Jiraiya's. Tsunade was more of the overprotective mother, often scolding Naruto for rash actions, and she was the only one who would punish him if he did something wrong. Ironically enough, Naruto is one of the only people to talk back, and disobey Tsunade, often getting himself in more trouble with the legendary Sannin. Still, the two were very close, when they weren't yelling at one another.

Naruto and Nagato were as close as brothers. Nagato, being the kindhearted person he is, would often converse with Naruto when he first came into league with the rebels. The two had much in common, and Naruto would often want to train with Nagato due to the latter's amazing abilities due to the Rinnengan. There weren't too many jutsus Nagato could teach Naruto, but he did help teach Naruto how to think more in a battle. Granted Naruto is still a brash knucklehead, but he's learned how to be more observant in great thanks to Nagato.

Naruto and Obito were as thick as thieves due to their goofy nature, fun loving attitude, and the many pranks they play on others. Obito was basically a child at heart, which of course allowed the child of the rebels to befriend him quickly. Tsunade would often scold both of them together when they pulled pranks on other people, telling Naruto he should be working on his jutsu for as much as he brags, and telling Obito he should be helping around the base. They never listened of course.

Konan acted as Naruto's older sister in many cases. She would sometimes cover up for Naruto's misbehaving, but Naruto would pay her back later in some way. Naruto also never hesitated to help Konan whenever she needed it. They rarely spend a lot of time together, due to Konan often volunteering to do anything to help and her being one of the rebel leaders, and they had only trained together two or three times. Still, Naruto respected Konan and Konan couldn't help but care for Naruto.

Yahiko and Naruto had more of a love hate relationship. Yahiko thought Naruto should help out more since all he does is play pranks, and rarely works around the base. Yahiko also gets annoyed by the fact that that Naruto takes people away like Nagato or Jiraiya to help him train, when the latter two should be helping make new plans to fight against Danzo. Naruto gets angry, saying that Yahiko is too strict and should lay off him. The two have become so aggravated with one another that they constantly argue, and they've even fought a few times. Jiraiya laughs it off, saying that the two are more alike then they care to admit. Which was true: they both believed that the rebels could beat Danzo, and that people around the world would no longer have to live in fear. Naruto did respect Yahiko for everything he's done for the rebels, and Yahiko does admire Naruto's passion to become the best and top Danzo himself. Still, the two often bump heads more than they get along.

"Hey, Naruto," a voice called out. The young Uzumaki looked up, seeing Ino waving at him, standing next to Neji, Tenten, and Kiba.

"Oh, hey guys," Naruto called back. "What're you all doing?" The gang of four approached Naruto.

"Nothing really," Tenten replied, "Just roaming around. What're you up to?"

"Well I was supposed to train with Nagato-san, but he's got to deal with some cave-in." Naruto's face suddenly lit up as he looked to his friends, "Hey, do you guys wanna train!"

"Sure, it's been awhile since I've kicked your butt," Kiba replied.

"Oh yeah," Naruto asked, putting himself close to Kiba with his fist raised challengingly.

"YEAH!" Sparks flew between Kiba and Naruto's glances as they growled at each other. Neji simply scoffed and turned his head away with a smile on his face.

"I could beat both of you easily," Neji remarked. This snapped both Kiba and Naruto's heads over to the cocky Hyuga.

"Care to repeat that again, I must've had something in my ear," Naruto said slowly and menacingly.

"I said," Neji began, turning his attention to Naruto with his smile widening, "I could beat both you AND Kiba easily!"

"OH YEAH," Naruto and Kiba exclaimed at the same time. Neji chuckled then turned his body to face the two.

"Care to make it interesting," Neji asked. Kiba and Naruto looked to each other then back at Neji. "The loser has to…grab one of Lady Tsunade's panties!" Naruto and Kiba both screamed with disgust, taking a step away from the chuckling Neji.

"No way dude, her face is young, but I'm betting that everything that's covered is wrinkled and saggy," Kiba exclaimed. The remark got Kiba two blows to the back of the head from Tenten and Ino.

"How dare you," Tenten shouted. "Lady Tsunade is an amazing shinobi and leader! How dare you disrespect her like that!"

"Seriously, what's the matter with you," Ino added, placing her foot on Kiba's back. "Haven't you been taught better?" Kiba growled as he tried to get back on his feet.

"The point Kiba made aside," Naruto said, leaning to Neji so the girls wouldn't hear, "If whoever got caught, then grandma Tsunade would kill us!"

"That's what makes it so juicy," Neji replied with a twisted smile. "You're not a chicken are you Naruto?"

"Am I a chicken? No. Am I afraid of grandma Tsunade coming at me in a blind rage with her super powered punches? Yes I am."

"Who said you were going to lose," Neji questioned, "I thought you and Kiba were going to beat me." Naruto narrowed his eyes and growled.

"You're on!" Naruto turned around, seeing Ino and Tenten still scolding Kiba who remained face down. "Hey girls, I need Kiba to beat the crap out of Neji." Tenten and Ino removed their feet from Kiba's back, allowing him to stand up and dust himself off.

"Sheesh, you couldn't have gotten me out of that mess sooner!"

"Hey, quit whining," Naruto snapped. "Come on, we gotta go kick Neji's ass again…"

"Again," Neji repeated. "When have either of you two EVER kicked my ass?"

"The last time we started training remember," Naruto exclaimed. "We were about ready to finish when Nagato-san broke it up!"

"You weren't kicking my ass! I was having an off day, but there was still no way you were going to win that fight!"

"Like hell we weren't you lying bastard," Kiba shouted.

"HEY," a loud voice shouted. The three youths jumped with fear and turned around, seeing Kiba's sister Hana approaching them. "What're you three doing?"

"Nothing Hana-san," Neji replied, his hands stiffly by his sides. The older Inuzuka narrowed her eyes at Neji then looked over to her brother who was practically cowering with fear.

"Kiba, what have I told you about your language?"

"Watch my tongue otherwise you'll rub sandpaper against it…"

"Good," Hana replied with a sharp nod. "Now, don't any of you think about heading up to the surface to spar." The three boys whined in unison, "Hey, I know it's not fun down here, but we can't risk you guys heading topside. If anyone saw you guys we'd all be in serious trouble. Understand?"

"Yes Hana-san," the three boys replied. The Inuzuka sister sighed, and knelt down in front of the trio.

"I'm sorry guys, but you know the rules. I can try to find a vacant area down here for you guys to spar."

"No, it's fine Hana-san," Neji replied. "I wouldn't want to beat up Kiba in front of his sister anyway." Kiba shot an angry glare over at Neji who had a smug grin on his face. Hana smiled then shook her head as she walked away to deal with other matters.

"I'm gonna kick your ass," Kiba shouted as he lunged at Neji. The young Hyuga laughed and dodged, then ran off as quickly as possible. Kiba growled as he gave pursuit on all fours. Naruto chased after them, laughing at the sight. Tenten and Ino simply shook their heads; boys were impossible.

Kiba: the resident hot-head of the group along with Naruto, which often caused friction between the two. Still, they got along well and their constant butting heads brought them closer together. Neji was the smart one of the group, both in intelligence and coming up with witty remarks to insult the rest with. Although neither Naruto nor Kiba would admit it, Neji was the best of the younger group. Ino acted more or less as the ringleader of the whole circus of kids. She made sure that they stayed in line and keeps trouble away from some of the more intimidating adults, like Tsunade. Tenten was the peacekeeper between everyone, often trying to diffuse arguments and fights between the group, usually between Naruto, Kiba, or Ino. The gang as a whole tried to help out as much as possible, but often found that adults didn't want their help, or didn't need it. Still, the group was as close as could be, and they all shared the dream of a peaceful world.

Within the village of Konoha, Danzo sat behind his desk, looking at a clipboard with many papers attached to it. The door opened and Orochimaru, wearing a black Jonin outfit, walked in.

"You wanted to see me," the Sannin questioned.

"Yes," Danzo replied. "I want you to take a team go to the Land of Waves. A Gato, from Gato Trading Industries, is paying us handsomely to stop the little speck of an island from building some type of bridge…"

"Really," Orochimaru mused. "Why send me?"

"Because, I want you to kill him after you're finished." Orochimaru cocked a questioning eyebrow up. "But after you find out where the fool hides most of his money of course."

Orochimaru sneered then nodded, "Of course. Kill one of the richest men in the world and take his money."

"Nobody should care about some criminal with a big business. After you're done that's start our campaign in the Land of Water. Assemble your team and get ready to move out." Orochimaru nodded with an evil grin then exited the Hokage's office.

Once outside, Orochimaru was met with his team of five students, all bowing before the snake. On Orochimaru's far left was the tallest boy with white hair and green eyes, and next to him was a boy with blue/white hair and a second head coming out of the back of his neck, followed by a young woman with red hair, a boy with four arms and very dark skin, and last but not least was a large man with a small orange Mohawk. Orochimaru smiled then walked past his students who stood up and followed their master.

"We're heading to the Land of Waves," was all the twisted Sannin said before jumping forward. Without a word his students followed after him.

Naruto was walking with Neji and Kiba, the latter of the three finally having calmed down. The boys were bored out of their wits. The amount of activities when you're underground can be very limiting when your thirteen years old. The trio looked up and saw Shizune, Tsunade's assistant, walking out of a slid open door with a chart in her hand.

"Hey Shizune-san," Kiba called out.

The medical ninja looked up and smiled warmly, "Hey guys!" The three boys walked up with smiles on their faces. "What's going on?"

"Can you come outside with us so we can spar or something," Naruto asked.

"Oh guys, I'd love to," Shizune replied with a disappointed tone, "but I've still got to fill out a requisition of the medical herbs and supplies I need if we're going to have a functioning medical corp." The three boys groaned and slumped their shoulders in disappointment. "Tell ya what…how about if I send you guys out to get this stuff for me?" The boy's spirits shot through the roof as they smiled as wide as they possibly could, "With an escort of course." The boys pouted. "You could get out at least right?"

"Shizune-san is right," Neji said with a level tone. Naruto and Kiba mumbled in agreement. Neji turned to Shizune then bowed his head, "If you could do so then we would be most appreciative Shizune-san."

"Alright," Shizune replied with a small laugh, "I'll see what I can do." The black haired medical ninja then turned and headed down the cavern halls.

"SWEET," Naruto shouted. "We're going outside!"

"Hopefully," Kiba muttered. "I'm not getting my hopes up though." Naruto glared at the young Inuzuka with annoyance.

'_What a downer…'_

The threesome continued roaming around the underground base for a few long minutes when suddenly a figure flashed before them. Kiba shot back, yelping with fright, Naruto twitched slightly, and Neji remained calm. The figure lifted his head up, revealing himself to be Itachi Uchiha. Naruto gave a sigh of relief then stared at Itachi with an agitated face.

"Hey guys," Itachi greeted casually, giving a small wave to boot.

"Hey yourself," Kiba shouted. Itachi rolled his eyes then rose up to his full height.

"Shizune senpai told me to head out to get some herbs and supplies she needed, and she wanted you guys to come along."

"I'm game," Neji exclaimed.

"Me too," Naruto added, equally as excited. The others turned to Kiba who turned away and huffed.

"I've got other things to do," the proud Inuzuka stated.

"Like what," Naruto questioned.

"I haven't seen Akamaru all day, so I should probably play with him." Before anyone could say anything more, Kiba walked away. Naruto and Neji looked to each other and shrugged, unsure what Kiba's problem was. Itachi sighed knowingly, gaining the attention of Naruto and Neji.

"So," Itachi continued, slapping his palms together, "Shall we be going?"

"Hell yeah," Naruto and Neji shouted. Itachi smiled then headed to the exit with the two young teens following behind him.

Yahiko sat at a desk in his private quarters, going through files and papers of different shinobi from various villages and of various ranks. So far most of them seemed too unreliable or too weak to help them in any way. Yahiko screamed in frustration, throwing a file to the side. They had a small army, but Danzo had four large armies. They couldn't hurt him by sabotage alone. They needed to get a sizable force to deal a devastating blow to Danzo and his allies in one fell swoop. Yahiko sighed then opened another file and started reading. His door opened quietly. The orange haired shinobi looked up, seeing his childhood friend Konan walking in.

"Hey," she greeted. Yahiko nodded in acknowledgement. "Need any help?"

"I'm just going through files," Yahiko replied. "There's not much you could do to help." Konan sighed quietly then nodded. "Have you ever heard of the Kurosuki family?" Konan shook her head. "They're probably the most decent individuals I've read about from all these files. They're a gang of misfits that shake down villages for protection money. They're ruthless and strict with one another: if someone doesn't follow orders then they just bury that person alive."

"How horrible," Konan muttered. "Do we need people like that on our team?"

"Maybe not, but they have a large assortment of weapons, and a pretty good amount of money too. And listen to this: the found of the gang is a former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, Raiga Kurosuki."

"That's…beneficial." Yahiko nodded in agreement, grabbing the file off the edge of his desk and handing it to Konan.

"Take this to master Jiraiya or lady Tsunade to see what they think."

Konan nodded then took the file. She headed for the door, but stopped halfway. The blue haired kunoichi turned her head, seeing that Yahiko was too focused on the file he was reading to notice her. Konan sighed then exited the room. Once she closed the door, Konan pulled out the file and started going over it herself. This group was little more than a gang of idiotic children. What did Yahiko think he would accomplish with recruiting this group?

"Konan," a voice called out. The blue haired kunoichi lifted her eyes from the file, seeing her redheaded partner walking towards him. "Hey, I've been looking for you."

"Tell me what you think of this file," Konan stated immediately, thrusting the papers in Nagato's face.

"Uh…I think it's a file…"

"Idiot," Konan snapped, smacking Nagato in the back of the head with the file. Nagato flinched as he was struck, but still managed to laugh at his own joke. "Tell me what you think of the group in this file." Nagato took the file, maintaining a smile on his face as held the papers in front of him. His eyes moved back and forth, scanning the file carefully.

"Who gave you this file?"

"Yahiko," Konan replied. "He thinks that we should try and bring those guys into our faction just because they have a little extra money, some extra weapons, and because their founder was a former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist."

"Really not," Nagato's tone was impressed as he went over the file again. Konan scoffed then ripped the file from Nagato's hands.

"Did you even read this file? It's a gang of misfits that shake down defenseless villages for money, and if there's someone in the gang that doesn't follow orders they get buried alive."

"Konan you know better than most that we need more people on our side, and we could use every cent we can get, AND some extra weapons wouldn't hurt either…unless Naruto a hold of them I suppose…"

"Aren't you listening though," Konan snapped angrily. "The reason we're all rogues is because we want to make the world a better place, make it fair and equal! If we bring this gang on our side we'll look like a bunch of criminals who encourage the type of behavior! How far are we willing to go just to win this war?"

"Well with due respect this gang is assembled of a bunch of rogues…we're all a bunch of rogues, but we're not the heartless bastards that our villages make us out to be. Who's to say that these guys can't change either?"

"They're criminals, the scum of the earth, pathetic pieces of human life. Why would they want to help us, and why should we even want their help?"

"Wow, those are some harsh names," Nagato rose his hands in defense, "I don't even think you've called out enemies that."

Konan threw her arms up with frustration then walked away. Nobody understood the moral issue! Nagato looked back at Konan with a concerned look then headed for Yahiko's quarters. The redhead knocked then opened the door, seeing his orange haired friend throwing another file to the side.

"Man, aren't we picky," Nagato said mockingly. Yahiko looked up then down at the files on the floor of rejects he found unfit to help.

"We need people who are trustworthy or who are valuable."

"Even a gang of crooks," Nagato questioned. Yahiko looked up questioningly to his friend. The Rinnengan user knelt down then lifted up a file and started reading it. "Oh now this guy could help us big time!" Nagato turned the folder around, showing Yahiko the picture.

"Yeah right," Yahiko scoffed, "Did you see why he's a rogue?"

"He stole a high class jutsu from his village," Nagato replied with a careless shrug. "A lot of others have stolen jutsus from their homes. Why is this guy so different?"

"Read his current occupation," Yahiko challenged. Nagato flipped the folder back around and read it carefully. "Terrorist bomber for hire. Yeah, we can trust him."

"Of course we can," Nagato sniped back. "All we've got to do is keep paying him." Yahiko sighed and rolled his eyes. "Notice where most of his bombings take place!" Nagato threw the folder back on Yahiko's desk, landing it perfectly open and facing up at the orange haired shinobi. Nagato laughed mockingly, believing his point to be proven.

"We still can't trust him," Yahiko replied, leaning back in his chair. "He's unstable and only stole the jutsu to improve his own power. He could just betray us to do the same."

"Yeah right, what do we have that's of any value?"

"Another good point," Yahiko continued, leaning forward. "If we have nothing to offer, then nobody, especially not this man, would want to join us. We've got to attack Danzo and show that we can stand up to him before we bring it people who want something."

"That…makes sense," Nagato mumbled slowly. "But what makes you think this Kurosuki family is going to join us without something in return?" Yahiko sighed with aggravation, falling back into his seat heavily. His eyes looked up angrily at Nagato who simply stared back.

"Konan told you to come in here didn't she?" Nagato's face fell with disbelief.

"What! No man, no she just showed me the file and I thought I'd make sure you thought it out completely and-,"

"Uh huh," Yahiko seethed, unconvinced. "Well tell her I've made up my mind and if it's okay with Jiraiya or Tsunade, then we're setting up a meeting with the Kurosuki family."

"I have no problem with that." Yahiko looked up to his friend with a smug look. Nagato studied it for a moment, then realized what he just said. "What I meant to say is that I have no problem with it, because I know there's no chance Jiraiya or Tsunade will go for it." Yahiko smirked then shook his head, looking back through files. Nagato swayed awkwardly, unsure if he should leave or try to prove his point further. He decided to leave.

Yahiko looked through another useless file then tossed it aside. His brown eyes drifted to the file that Nagato had thrown on his desk. Yahiko snorted then turned away, already making up his mind of that criminal. His eyes reluctantly moved back to the file. Yahiko sighed then pulled the file over and opened it, staring at the picture clipped just above his name: 'Deidara.'


	3. Ambush

Naruto and Neji followed Itachi down a dirt trail towards a nearby forest containing most, if not all, of the herbs Shizune needs. The two boys were excited and happy as could be to be outside and under the sky above.

"Neji, can I trust you to go to the village just outside of the forest to get some supplies," Itachi questioned.

"Sure thing boss," Neji replied. "If I was in a rush to get back." Itachi chuckled a bit, looking back over his shoulder. Naruto looked at Neji then understood what he meant. The young Jinchuriki snapped his head over at Itachi, giving him a stern look.

"Alright, alright, we'll take our time getting back." Neji and Naruto laughed then slapped hands with one another.

"Hey Itachi," Naruto said as he turned his head to the older shinobi, "do you know why Kiba was all angry and didn't want to come?"

Itachi rolled his eyes then shrugged. Despite his lie, Neji and Naruto seemed to buy it. Itachi pulled out the list and started going over it again. Naruto and Neji hurried and stood up on their tip toes to try and read the list as well, unbeknownst to Itachi. The young Uchiha shifted his eyes to the side, catching Naruto and Neji reading over his shoulder. Not only was Itachi confused as to why they were being so nosy, he was even more confounded by the fact that they were looking _over_ his shoulder. Itachi snapped his head, but Naruto and Neji were a split second faster. The black haired shinobi narrowed his eyes while Naruto and Neji walked a few paces behind him, acting casually. Itachi gave a questioning look to the duo before turning back around. Naruto and Neji both grinned widely and turned to each other.

Tsunade sat behind her desk, reading the file that Konan gave her about the Kurosuki family. Konan knew that if anyone, besides herself, would be opposed to working with such ruthless outlaws it'd be Tsunade. The busty blonde finally dropped the file and looked up at Konan with her honey colored eyes.

"I think we could use them," Tsunade replied. Konan's face dropped with horror and outrage. Tsunade casually put the file back on her desk and looked up at Konan, waiting for the protest that was sure to come.

"You're kidding right," Konan shouted, "they're a gang of ruthless criminals!"

"To some we could be seen as ruthless," Tsunade retorted.

"They know what they're doing is wrong! We're trying to bring peace to the world." Tsunade sighed then leaned back into her chair.

"Look, I'm honestly no fan of this gang or their morals either, but they do have a reputation of getting things done. And their leader is one of the former Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. At the very least we could try and negotiate with them if nothing else." Konan sighed and looked away with a sharp glare.

"Very well lady Tsunade…" The blue haired kunoichi turned and walked out of the room. Tsunade sighed heavily before going through another file.

Itachi and Naruto were in the forest, picking through various herbs and plants. Itachi knew exactly what to get, but Naruto had a little more difficulty differentiating between medical herbs and weeds. Neji was keeping look out with his Byakugan active in case if any wandering shinobi happen to stroll through the area.

"What about this one," Naruto asked. Itachi turned his head then rolled his eyes.

"Are you doing this on purpose now? Naruto, that's a bush! Literally, you just pulled a bush out of the ground!" Naruto looked at the giant clump of green in his hand then back at Itachi with an embarrassed smile. Itachi sighed and rolled his eyes before moving back to gathering herbs.

"Are we almost done," Naruto asked, "this is boring…"

"You're the one who wanted to get outside so badly," Itachi sniped.

"Yeah, but picking plants got boring really fast." Itachi chuckled and shook his head.

"Uh…guys," Neji called, "we got a caravan of Konoha shinobi coming in our general direction!"

"Alright," Naruto shouted, slamming his fist into his open hand. In a flash, Itachi grabbed Neji, then grabbed Naruto and ran for a better place to hide. "Hey, what're you doing? Let's go kick their asses!"

"Yeah right, a runaway Hyuga, Konoha's Jinchuriki, and an Uchiha survivor would surely bring attention to ourselves."

"Itachi's right," Neji added, "if even one shinobi got away then he'd report the sighting to Danzo, and then we'd all be in trouble."

"That's why we kick all their asses so that they can't get away!"

Itachi and Neji both scoffed and rolled their eyes. Itachi jumped down in a nearby, thick bush a few meters away from their previous location. They watched the trail as a group of Chunin and Jonin, dressed with dark grey vests and black shirts under them, escorted a few wagons of weapons and supplies.

Itachi watched the shinobi pass by, not daring to move a muscle. One shinobi in particular caught the young Uchiha's attention. A man with silver hair, wearing a mask to cover his face, and eyes as hard and cold as steel: Kakashi Hatake. Itachi's eyes focused in on him, knowing that they'd be in for one hell of a fight if Kakashi found them.

The Jonin suddenly stopped and held his fist up, ordering the rest of the group to stop as well. Everyone remained where they stood, watching Kakashi who was scanning his surroundings. Two younger shinobi suddenly appeared next to Kakashi, bowing their heads to him. Itachi figured they must have been his students at least.

"Kakashi sensei," a young woman with short, dark hair addressed respectfully.

"I want this area scanned," the Jonin stated. The young girl nodded then clasped her hands together.

'_This isn't good,'_ Itachi thought. He hastily casted a quick but very powerful genjutsu around himself, Naruto and Neji to shield them from detection.

"What's the holdup," an annoyed voice asked.

Kakashi looked up, just as a woman jumped on the roof of a wagon. The woman wore a black trench coat over a full chainmail bodysuit, and a dark orange skirt. She had violet hair that was put up into a spiky bun.

"Nothing," Kakashi lied.

"Well your favorite student over here is already getting impatient." Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Anko, then turned back to his student.

The young girl looked around, her vision seeing everything around her. "I don't see anything Kakashi sensei." The masked Jonin looked to his other student.

"Shino, I want you to make sure that Hinata didn't miss anything." The young man nodded then held his arms out.

Itachi looked at the style of clothing the other young student wore and determined that he was from the Aburame Clan. Millions of tiny black dots flew out of the boy's sleeves and stayed still in the air. Itachi slowly reached to his back pouch and pulled out three masks. They were required for everyone in case they needed to shield their identity. He handed one to Naruto and another to Neji.

"When I give the word, we run," Itachi said.

Neji nodded, his face showing hardened resolve, but deep down he was a bit nervous. Naruto's anxiety was more obvious as he nodded once. The tiny black dots slowly started to move in their direction. The three rogues quickly put on their masks and placed their hands firmly on the ground.

"There," Shino exclaimed, snapping his head towards Itachi, Neji, and Naruto's direction.

"MOVE," Itachi shouted. The three of them shot out of the bushes in a flash.

"Track them," Kakashi ordered his students. Hinata and Shino, as well as a third figure from the other side of the wagon, jumped forward in pursuit.

"Go back them up," Anko shouted, turning her head to the side she came from. Three more figures ran out from the sides and went into the forest. "Shouldn't you go help them or something," Anko inquired, turning to Kakashi.

"They can handle themselves," Kakashi replied with a cold, uncaring tone.

"Should we split up," Neji asked, running next to Itachi.

"No, we don't know how many they sent after us." Itachi was digging around in his back pouch before finally pulling out a pair of goggles with tinted lenses. "This should disguise your Byakugan from them."

Neji nodded then took the goggles and put them around his head. Itachi reached into his kunai holster and pulled out a pair of slim, shining sunglasses and slapped them over his eyes. Neji and Naruto gave a disbelieving look to one another before turning back to Itachi. The man had a weird taste for sunglasses for some reason.

Itachi snapped his head, pulling out a kunai. He spun around and deflected a shuriken that was aimed right at him. Neji turned his head, but before he could even lay eyes on his comrade, he saw a fireball coming at him. The Hyuga rogue planted his feet in the ground then sprung himself into Itachi, knocking them both out of harm's way. The fireball exploded once it hit the ground, throwing Itachi and Neji into Naruto. Six figures landed around the trio, two were in tree branches above, two more used other trees as shields, while the last two stood on opposite sides, out in the open.

Neji and Itachi quickly got up and looked at their formation. What was supposed to happen is that they were supposed to attack the ones in the open. Once that happened, the ones in the tree branches would spring a trap, or throw something to cause the enemy to dodge. Once that happened, the shinobi behind the tree would move in and finish the opponent off.

"You all are going down," Naruto shouted as he sprung to his feet. Itachi quickly reached out and grabbed the back of the energetic Uzumaki's collar, holding him in place while Naruto screamed and shouted with protest.

One of the shinobi on the tree branches got a bit impatient then hurled three shuriken at the opponents. Neji and Itachi, still having a hold on Naruto, jumped straight up into the air as not to give their opponents an opening. One shinobi, with a strange device on his arm, sprung forward, going straight for Itachi. Neji looked over, seeing the enemy heading towards Itachi. He spun around with as much force as possible and then struck the Konoha shinobi in the stomach. The Genin cried out with pain before he hit the ground hard.

The three rogues landed on the ground, standing back to back against their opponents. Naruto growled angrily, then forced Itachi's grip off before turning to the shinobi in front of him. Naruto's eyes widened with shock at the face of his enemy. He looked exactly like Itachi, albeit Itachi was a bit older and had longer, duller hair. Naruto tugged on Itachi's shirt, unable to form the proper words.

Itachi turned around then grimaced quietly. He knew what Sasuke's fate was, but there was nothing Itachi or anybody else could do about it, especially now. More Konoha shinobi could be on their way and they didn't have time for a long, emotional speech.

Itachi turned forward, staring at Shino, the shinobi that tried to attack him a moment ago with bandages wrapped all around his face so that only one eye was visible, and another shinobi with spiky black hair that was similar to Kakashi's. Neji meanwhile was standing across from Hinata Hyuga: the heiress to the Hyuga household. Itachi's eyes scanned the area, trying to find the sixth shinobi.

"What're you waiting on," Sasuke asked with a forceful, angry voice, "ATTACK!"

The three shinobi facing off against Itachi ran forward. The older shinobi jumped to the side, distancing himself from everyone. The three shinobi followed after him, just as Itachi hoped. Neji stood still, watching Hinata carefully as she ran at him. The Hyuga heiress thrusted an open palm forward, which Neji batted aside like a fly before thrusting his own palm at her. Naruto looked back to see how his comrades were holding up.

"Don't take your eyes off me," an angry voice shouted. Naruto quickly turned around, then blocked Sasuke's strike with his forearm.

The young Uchiha scowled then swept his leg against Naruto's, knocking the latter towards the ground. Sasuke then threw his fist down as Naruto hit the ground. The blonde grabbed Sasuke's fist with one hand and his elbow with the other. Naruto threw Sasuke over onto his back, rolling on top of him with one hand at his throat. Sasuke grabbed Naruto's wrist, trying to pry his hand away, but found his opponent's grip surprisingly strong. Naruto threw a punch across Sasuke's face, then another, and another, and kept smashing his fist against his adversary's face. Sasuke moved his head to the side, avoiding Naruto's next punch. The Jinchuriki's fist hit the ground, causing Naruto to wince with pain. Sasuke threw his legs up, throwing Naruto over his head.

Sasuke jumped to his feet then kicked Naruto in the side of the head with all his might. Naruto cried out and rolled over, clutching the side of his head. Sasuke walked up and kicked Naruto in the ribs next. Once again, the Jinchuriki rolled over onto his back. Sasuke bent over then threw a couple of punches. Sasuke then walked around Naruto like a predator. His opponent was on the ground, holding his sides and whining with pain. Sasuke smirked then lifted his foot up, ready to stomp his opponent into the ground. His foot moved quickly, but when it was about an inch from the masked rogue, Naruto's hands quickly caught Sasuke's foot, and held on tightly.

Naruto's eyes sparkled as he chuckled with amusement, "Had you fooled didn't I?"

Sasuke screamed as Naruto stood up, throwing the young Uchiha off the ground and spinning backwards. Sasuke landed with a heavy thud on his chest, but quickly sprung himself up as Naruto's foot was about to smash him into the dirt. Naruto shifted his weight into the foot he used to try and attack Sasuke, spun around on his heel, and threw a mighty punch at the young Uchiha. Sasuke raised his hand up, using his arm to reinforce himself as he caught Naruto's punch. Sasuke's feet skidded back against the dirt, but he held his own. The young Uchiha threw Naruto's arm to the side then threw a powerful straight that connected with Naruto's face. The blonde Jinchuriki flew back, flipping backwards before he landed on the ground. Naruto stared back at an enraged Sasuke, waiting for him to make the next move.

Neji was sliding back as he swatted all of Hinata's strikes away. He managed to hold his anger in, but he couldn't go on the offensive against her without revealing his Hyuga lineage. Neji had been trained in various other taijutsu styles, but none of them would be very effective against the Hyuga fighting style. All Neji could do was go on the defensive and wait for an opening. Unfortunately, with Hinata's skills, there wasn't any room for an opening.

Itachi was on the defensive against his opponents to better understand their fighting styles and abilities. So far though, none of them seemed to be revealing much. The shinobi with bandages all around his face charged forward, pulling his right arm back. Itachi's eyes focused in on the device around his arm. The older shinobi leaped straight up in the air, throwing a kunai with a paper bomb directly below him. The Konoha shinobi jumped away as Itachi landed in a tree branch, taking a moment to look for the sixth shinobi.

'_Whoever it is must be for support. They watch for which teammate could use the most help. Whoever it is obviously isn't the strongest of this group. If they could finish off Naruto or Neji by helping either Sasuke or the girl, then they could move onto me…'_

Itachi's thoughts were cut short by a pair of shuriken coming for his face. He moved his head back, falling off the tree branch. Itachi managed to grab the branch, spin forward and land back on the branch. He wasn't about to give up the high grounds against a group of unpredictable young punks.

"Sheesh, I figured a member of the Uchiha Clan would've been more of a challenge," Naruto muttered. Sasuke's eyes widened with outrage and anger. The blonde smirked, knowing he struck a cord. "If you're all that's left, then that means rebuilding your clan falls on your shoulders. Honestly, I think your clan is screwed if they're relying on you."

"You…**DARE** insult my clan!" Naruto chuckled as innocently as possible. "I'LL KILL YOU!" Sasuke charged towards the blonde, eyes flaring with rage.

"Yeah, you've done a splendid job of that so far," Naruto stated quickly before he jumped straight up in the air as Sasuke threw a punch. The Jinchuriki screamed as he kicked Sasuke across the face, sending him spinning to the ground. "Oh man," Naruto said as he landed, "that hurt didn't it?"

Sasuke turned around and got up, ready to continue. There was a rustling in the bush, causing Naruto to spin around as a pair of snakes shot out. The Jinchuriki yelped with surprise as he grabbed the serpents just below their heads. Naruto sighed with relief, but suddenly he saw another figure coming out of the bushes. The blonde quickly let go of the snakes then moved to the side, getting a better look at his opponent. All he could see was a flowing head of long pink hair attached to a slender body. Naruto landed and skidded to a stop as his new opponent turned to him.

It was a young woman with long, silky pink hair, fiercely determined eyes. She wore a red dress, with tight black shorts, and wore her forehead protector around the top of her head. Naruto's eyes were as wide as could be.

'_She's…so…beautiful…'_

"Are you alright Sasuke-kun," the girl asked, turning to said Uchiha.

"I'm fine," the black haired shinobi snapped. "What're you doing here? Isn't there someone else who could use your help Sakura?" The girl named Sakura looked away with a faint blush. Sasuke turned his head to her, waiting for her response, "Well?"

"That's her way of saying you suck," Naruto shouted, angry that Sasuke was picking on Sakura. The young Uchiha snapped his head around, growling angrily. "What? It's true isn't it?"

"You ignorant little punk," Sasuke seethed, "you think you're so tough don't you?"

"Uh…yeah, that's why I say you SUCK!" Sasuke smirked and scoffed dismissively.

"You have no idea what I'm really capable of. I just didn't feel like wasting my talents on a loser like you." Naruto's eyes hardened a bit. Sasuke got ready to attack, but the older rogue showed up between the two of them.

"We're leaving," Itachi told Naruto. "I can sense that reinforcements are coming."

"Fine," Naruto muttered. Even he knew better than argue.

"No one is going anywhere," Sasuke shouted. "I'll finish you all off here and-," Itachi snapped his head over to Sasuke. The younger Uchiha's eyes fluttered as he fell down as limp as a noodle.

"What the—Sasuke-kun? What'd you do?" Itachi lifted his hand up, slowly extending his finger.

"Hey, there's no reason for that is there," Naruto whispered to Itachi.

The older shinobi sighed to himself, then moved his hand over and pointed to his former opponents. They too were in Sasuke's condition. Sakura growled briefly before looking over to the rogues who were now gone.

Kakashi and Anko appeared behind Sakura, looking around and seeing all of their students lying on the ground and all unconscious. Sakura turned her head, then quickly snapped her body around and bowed to the Jonin.

"I'm sorry, but they got away sensei," Sakura apologized.

"Some student you have," Kakashi sniped mockingly at Anko.

"Hey, she's the only one who's conscious," Anko retorted. Kakashi walked over to Sasuke and looked down at him. "They're under a genjutsu. Even I could tell that without having to study him."

"Did you get a good look at the enemy," Kakashi asked.

"No really," Sakura replied, "they were wearing masks and two of them were wearing goggles or glasses to cover their eyes." Kakashi turned to Anko with a knowing look.

"Oh, sure, just automatically assume its Itachi or Obito. You know lord Danzo is going to want solid proof." Kakashi growled angrily then looked back to the unconscious Genin. "Just let it go big guy. Those three are long gone by now, and we've got to make this shipment otherwise Danzo is going to get really angry." Kakashi nodded then looked to Sakura.

"Break them out of this genjutsu and regroup." Sakura nodded as Kakashi vanished in a blur. Anko gave one last look to her student then followed after Kakashi.

Sakura walked up to her teammates: Dosu and Zaku first and broke them out of the genjutsu. They were obviously less than pleased with themselves having failed to apprehend or stall the enemy any further. The team then released the genjutsu from Hinata, Shino, and Sasuke and headed back to the caravan.

Itachi was pulling his shirt off over his head then lifted his leg up to remove his shoe. "So explain why we're taking a detour to the river," Neji asked.

"One of the Genin we encountered was of the Aburame Clan. They have tiny bugs that do their bidding. One of them might've gotten on us and then they'd be able to track us. If you guys want to go home, I suggest jumping in the river and drowning the little bastard."

"Alright, alright fine," Neji muttered, throwing his goggles in the river next to him. The river had a slow stream, so he didn't have to worry about losing them in the current. "So how long do we have to stay in the river?"

"About five minutes," Itachi replied. The two clansmen looked up, seeing Naruto looking off into the distance as he sat perches on a tree branch. "Naruto, get down here." The blonde shook his thoughts out of his head then turned around.

"Alright!" The Jinchuriki jumped down and removed his shirt and mask. "What're we doing?" Itachi and Neji both raised their eyebrows questioningly.

"If you don't know what we're doing then why'd you take your shirt off," Neji questioned.

"You both have your shirts off," Naruto replied, "And I heard the part about the river, I just don't know why we're doing any of this."

"Safety precautions," Itachi answered. "Just hurry and get in the river." The trio jumped in quickly, making a huge splash.

Naruto's head broke through the stream first, taking a deep breath of air. The blonde looked up into the sky. The image of Sakura was still burned freshly into his mind, and he couldn't get it out of his head. Neji's head slowly came up through the water, his Byakugan active in case if the enemy came in pursuit. Itachi's whole body came up next, as the older rogue floated on his back, looking up to the orange and purple sky as the sun was setting. Itachi looked over at Naruto, seeing that the boy was deep in thought.

"Something wrong Naruto?" The blonde's head shook again, being snapped out of his trance.

"Huh?"

"Is something wrong," Itachi repeated.

"Uh…no, nothing's wrong. Why would you ask that?"

"You look like you're thinking," Itachi replied, cracking a slight smirk. Neji's head then whipped around to Naruto.

"Are you okay Naruto? You didn't hit your head or anything did you?"

"Oh hardy-har-har, you guys are so funny," Naruto hissed sarcastically. "Nothings wrong okay, so stop asking."

"If you're sure," Neji murmured.

The trio soaked in the river for a few minutes before finally getting out. They walked along the nearest dirt trail with water dripping from every part of their bodies as they headed back to the base.

* * *

So yeah, I'm not too horribly happy with this chapter. I apologize if it seems rushed, and for the random and possibly pointless fight scene (I say possibly because some may think its worthless). Also I would like to take this time to inform everyone that I'm going to California this Wednesday to visit my girlfriend. Yes, I'm in a long distance relationship, and have been for fifteen months lol. The reason I tell you this is because I don't know how much I'll be able to work on my stories, so if you don't see a whole lot of activity from me, it's not because I've died, it's because I'm busy for once in my life lol. Anywho, thanks for reading and please leave reviews =D


	4. First Gamble

Itachi, Naruto, and Neji walked back into their underground home, being greeted by Shizune. The fact that the three of them were shirtless and dripping wet caused some eyebrows to be raised.

"Itachi, why are you guys-,"

"We had a bit of a run-in with Konoha forces," Itachi answered. Shizune's eyes widened, showing shock and worry. "Don't worry, we only fought off Genin level students and got away clean. But one of them was from the Aburame Clan so we took a quick dip."

"Uh, v-very well," Shizune stuttered with confusion. "Well did you at least get the herbs I asked for?"

"We got a few of them Shizune-san," Neji replied, holding out a backpack to her. "Itachi ditched the bag before we fought with Konoha, so there's no way that Aburame kid could've planted a bug on these."

"Alright," Shizune replied, taking the bag. "But I'm still going to have to comb through them carefully just in case. Until then why don't you three uh…put some dry clothes on."

"Shouldn't we report Konoha's activities," Itachi questioned. "We don't know why they're here and they could-,"

"We know why they're here," Obito's voice interjected. Everyone looked over, seeing the spiky haired Uchiha walking towards them. "They're delivering shipments to a gang in this country. Our inside sources tell us it's the Kurosuki Family."

"Why are they delivering goods to a gang like that," Itachi asked.

"We think it's because they're trading with the Kurosuki Family. The profits that the gang gets, a portion of it goes to Konoha. Relatively small funds compared to what Konoha usually rakes in, but I suppose they want whatever money they can get their greedy hands on."

"So Konoha gives supplies to the Kurosuki Family, and the Kurosuki Family shakes down smaller villages for money, gives a portion of the profits to Konoha. Konoha gets some extra money, and they can keep the smaller villages in check without being directly involved." Obito gave a blank look at Itachi before looking up to ponder the idea.

"That…makes sense actually…" Itachi smirked with pride. "Well, I've got some reporting to do. See ya guys!" Obito turned and ran back into the hideout.

"Alright, I've got some work to do," Shizune stated. "You three get some dry clothes and stay out of trouble."

"Yes ma'am," Neji and Naruto replied with a mocking salute. Shizune smiled and rolled her eyes before walking off.

"Come on guys," Itachi said, walking to the barracks with Naruto and Neji following him.

* * *

Kakashi's eyes were hardened with anger. There was a group of rogues spying on them and Anko's idiotic attitude allowed them to escape. His team was the best tracking team in all of Konoha. They were better than most ANBU squads.

Kakashi was naturally a skilled tracker, and his ninja hounds also added to his skill. If a single bug of Shino's was planted on an enemy he could track them in a matter of minutes. Hinata's Byakugan could search several meters of land in a full 360 degree radius, and even see through solid objects. Even without the Sharingan, Sasuke's eyes were almost inhumanly sharp. He could notice an unnatural rustling in the leaves a mile away.

Still, Kakashi's orders came directly from Danzo himself. A shipment of weapons, explosive tags, summoning scrolls, of weapons only of course, was being delivered to the Kurosuki Family. Kakashi never understood why Danzo wanted to work with these petty criminals. Perhaps it was because he wanted a member of the Legendary Swordsmen under his belt.

Lord Danzo had been planning a campaign to establish connections to the Land of Water for some time now. A rogue member of the Seven Swordsmen could be beneficial if he wanted to establish an alliance. Of course using him as a way to exploit all of the village's weaknesses would work if Danzo was planning an invasion.

The convoy came to the campsite of the Kurosuki Family. There were many tents set up, small fires burning to cook their food, and a few people sitting in tents of caves. A group of five approached the convoy.

"Is this everything," the apparent leader asked.

"It sure is," Anko replied with her upbeat tone of voice. "Payment, now."

The man narrowed his eyes then nodded to the two men standing at the rear of the group. They walked up with one suit case each and threw it in front of Kakashi and Anko. The two Jonin knelt down and opened the cases, both showing a certain irritation.

"This is significantly less than usual," Kakashi stated with a harsh tone.

"Well we've run just about every village dry of money," the Kurosuki goon shouted. "We can't keep paying the amount Danzo demands!"

"Fine then," Anko replied casually. "We'll cut your shipment by half."

"You can't do that," the Kurosuki goon angrily shouted. The entire gang in the camp stood up, their bodies tensing up, ready for a fight.

"Enough," a loud and demanding voice boomed. The gang froze in their tracks and watched as a tall figure with an apparent hunch back approached. The man had a hood over his head, and his collar hid his face. "Tell Danzo that we're sorry about the payments. We'll settle for half of the shipment."

"But Raiga sir-," The goon was cut off by Raiga's enraged glare. The loud mouthed goon took a hesitant step back. Raiga turned his head back to Kakashi.

"Next time we'll have your usual payment. I'm sure Danzo is a reasonable man."

"You'd be surprised," Anko muttered, lifting the suitcase off the ground and signaling for the back carriage driver to turn around. "We'll be back again." Raiga nodded in acknowledgement as the Konoha shinobi turned and went away.

The rogue swordsmen turned around quickly, glaring at the goon who dared to threaten his alliance with Konoha. The man stepped back, trembling with fear before he tripped and fell on his rear.

"Give him a proper funeral," Raiga shouted. The other four that accompanied the goon grabbed him and lifted him off the ground.

"N-no-no wait! Please, Raiga sir I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"

"Right, because you'll be buried!"

The four goons dropped their fellow gang member in a coffin and held him down while they put the top over him. More goons showed up and held the lid shut while two others started nailing the coffin shut. The man thrashed around, trying to break free, but to no avail. Raiga turned around and walked off with an amused smile on his mouth.

* * *

Anko opened the brief case while looking at the relatively small amount of money inside. "Boy, Danzo's gonna be pissed…" Anko's students: Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku, walked behind their sensei. "Here, hold this." Anko tossed the case over her shoulder carelessly. Zaku quickly grabbed it before it could hit the ground and held it at his side.

"You think she's mad about our failure," Sakura asked, leaning towards Dosu. Zaku also leaned in, curious as to what the answer would be.

"That's one of the perks of having Anko as a sensei," Dosu replied, "She's much more forgiving than most other Jonin. We may be pushed in our next training session, but it'll be nothing compared to what Sasuke's team will have to go through."

Sakura looked over, seeing Sasuke walked in front of his teammates, but behind Kakashi. She had a concerned look on her face, worried what her secret crush might be put through. Dosu and Zaku peered over, noticing Sakura's worried expression.

"Good lord, you know you shouldn't pretend to care about him," Zaku stated.

"What do you mean," Sakura hissed angrily, but still keeping her voice down. "I love Sasuke-kun!" A blush formed across the kunoichi's face.

"Yeah, and I'm the next Hokage," Dosu replied with a smirk in his tone. Zaku chuckled while his teammate elbowed him for acknowledgement.

"You both are jerks," Sakura snapped. "Just because one of you looks like a mummy and the other one is just a jerk to anything that breathes doesn't mean I don't have a shot at happiness."

"Yeah, you're going to find happiness from an arrogant asshole," Zaku murmured. "That's the dream you're living Sakura." Dosu snickered while Sakura simply huffed and turned her head away in anger.

"We're approaching the area where those rogues were," Kakashi announced. Anko turned her head, staring at the masked ninja whose eyes were glaring back expectantly.

"So what," the female Jonin finally asked.

"I suggest we send a group ahead to scout it out."

"Right, sure, because that's just pointless…"

"Just send one of your students ahead and I'll send two of mine."

Anko rolled her eyes then looked back at Dosu. The hunched over Genin nodded then ran ahead of the group. On the other side of the carriage, Shino and Hinata caught up with Dosu. Zaku put his free hand behind his head and looked back over at Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi was once again staring at Sasuke with those big goo-goo eyes. Zaku simply sighed and rolled his eyes.

"A girl can dream," Sakura muttered, mostly to herself.

"That's all it's going to be is a dream. Or in his case you might get lucky and he could just use you to harbor his babies to rebuild his clan. You could be shooting out babies every nine months and the Uchiha Clan will be revived in no time."

"You're seriously a jerk," Sakura snapped.

"I'm just calling it like I see it," Zaku replied with a casual shrug. Sakura huffed angrily as she looked away from Sasuke and Zaku.

* * *

Orochimaru walked through the forest with his five students following in behind him. The large team of shinobi approached a small shack up in a tree where Gato was rumored to be. The Sannin wasted no time and jumped up to the front door and knocked. Two of his students: Kimimaro and Kidomaru, stood next to their master. Orochimaru knocked twice and waited.

"Who the hell is it?" A man with spiky haired and a sword at his hip opened the door angrily. The man turned even paler then the grinning figure before his eyes. "B-b-b-b-b-b-boss!"

The thug turned tail and ran back inside. Orochimaru invited himself in with his two students following behind him. The inside of the shack was about as good as one could expect and wasn't all that impressive. At the back of the room, a short man wearing a black suit sat in a chair, a cane next to him as well as two bodyguards. The man, like his servant, was very surprised.

"O-Orochimaru!"

"At your service," the sinister Sannin replied with a cordial bow.

"I-I didn't think Danzo would send you! This is better than I thought!"

"Yes, I bet it is." The pale Sannin stood straight up, staring at Gato. "Danzo said I was to be given payment up front, and then twice that much once I complete my job."

"Right." Gato motioned to one of his goons. The man walked over and pulled a painting off the wall, revealing a safe inside. Orochimaru raised a questioning eyebrow.

'_How cliché…'_

The goon opened the safe and pulled out four suitcases and tossed them over to the Konoha Sannin. His students knelt down and opened each case which was overflowing with case. Orochimaru sneered as he saw the money, then he looked up at Gato.

"So what's our mission again?"

* * *

Obito's look showed worry. He had just told Yahiko that their Konoha spies informed them of the village's dealings with the Kurosuki Family. For some reason the orange haired man seemed rather displeased.

"You're one hundred percent that-,"

"Sources confirm that Konoha is dealing with the Kurosuki Family," Obito repeated. That was about the sixth time since he walked into Yahiko's office.

"I'm never going to hear the end of this," Yahiko muttered. "Go inform lady Tsunade and Jiraiya sensei of this information."

"Yes Yahiko-san," Obito replied.

The spiky haired Uchiha turned and opened the door to leave when suddenly there was a quick 'woosh' that nearly knocked him off balance. One glance down and Obito saw Naruto running like there was no tomorrow. Just then, Kiba and Neji came trailing behind with obvious anger on their faces. Obito sighed and shrugged, deciding it would be best to just inform Tsunade and Jiraiya of the news.

"You're a dead man Naruto," Kiba shouted, his pupils becoming slit while his features became more feral. Neji's Byakugan was active as well, which didn't do much beside let him see everything around him.

Naruto laughed fitfully as he continued to flee for his life. Less than an hour he's been back home and he already had his two best friends threatening to tear him limb from limb. As Naruto rounded a corner, he was met with a whirlwind of papers that clung around him, covering his mouth and eyes.

Naruto saw nothing but darkness for a few moments before the paper was removed from his eyes. Konan was staring expectantly at the blonde Uzumaki who chuckled nervously, knowing he was going to get scolded.

"Where have you been?"

"I was out with Itachi and Neji," Naruto answered truthfully.

Konan's eyes narrowed, trying to intimidate Naruto for the truth. The blonde chuckled even more nervously and began to sweat a bit under the collar. Konan was one of the only people that Naruto truly feared. The big sister role meant that Konan wouldn't pull her punches on Naruto…literally in some cases.

The blue haired kunoichi unwrapped Naruto and let him safely down on the ground. "Don't cause any more problems than we already have Naruto."

"Yes ma'am," Naruto answered.

Kiba and Neji suddenly flew around the corner, ready to attack Naruto. The blonde squealed with fright and prepared himself for the worse. Konan snapped her eyes over to the two boys, encasing the boys entirely with paper.

"Hey let us out," Kiba's muffled voice shouted.

Naruto slowly opened his eyes, seeing Neji and Kiba both were trapped. The blonde turned and booked it, laughing as he went. Konan sighed and released the two brown haired boys. The two landed on the ground, looking up at the angered Konan.

"You two, behave got it?"

"Yes ma'am," Neji and Kiba replied quickly.

While Kiba and Neji didn't have as close of a relationship as she and Naruto did, they knew well enough to fear Konan. The blue haired kunoichi began to walk away before Obito ran up behind her, panting heavily.

"Finally," the spiky haired shinobi sighed out. "Have you seen Jiraiya or lady Tsunade?"

"No," Konan replied, turning to face Obito. "Why?"

"Well Yahiko-san wanted to let them know about the Kurosuki Family and Konoha dealing together." Konan's eyes twitched with a jolt of surprise. "Our sources couldn't really confirm it until Itachi, Naruto, and Neji encountered a group of Konoha shinobi moving through the country."

"Oh Yahiko is **NEVER** going to hear the end of this!" Konan turned around again and stormed off towards Yahiko's office.

"You seriously couldn't find Jiraiya," Kiba questioned.

"Or lady Tsunade," Neji added.

"No I found em," Obito replied, "But this is more fun to watch." The spiky haired Uchiha giggled at his own plan as he tiptoed after Konan.

* * *

The wind blew harshly, filling the streets and the village with sand. Sasori didn't care, he was safely in his office, going over documents from Konoha. Sand storms were often common this time of year anyway. Someone knocked on his door twice the entered. His assistant, a young man with round glasses and sliver hair pulled back into a ponytail, entered with an armful of more documents.

"Lord Sasori," he greeted with a respectful bow.

"What is it Kabuto, I'm very busy."

"Just a routine checkup since your um…modification." Sasori shifted his eyes up with annoyance.

"Everything is working just fine Kabuto. It's been nearly a month since my 'modification' and nothing has gone even remotely wrong." Kabuto nodded with a smile. "I assume you wouldn't waste my time with something so trivial would you Kabuto?" The silver haired assistant swallowed the nervous lump in his throat then started flipping through files in his hands. The redheaded Kage's face remained unchanged. Kabuto hastily took the folder then pulled out another and handed it to the Kazekage.

"This is from Hanzo of Amegakure." Sasori sighed as he took the folder, opened, and began reading.

"A reminder of the Chunin Exams eh?" Sasori moved his eyes up to Kabuto, forming a sly smile across his face. "Gaara just became a Genin didn't he?"

"Yes sir, I take it you want him to participate?"

"Indeed," Sasori replied. "Do we have any other worthy Genin that could participate?"

"I'll start going over some files immediately my lord."

"Make sure that Gaara gets entered first, then you can worry about the others."

"Yes sir, but lord Sasori, in order for Gaara to qualify he must be placed in a team with a Jonin as a sensei."

"Then place him with his siblings and put one of our most loyal Jonin as his sensei." Kabuto nodded and bowed before moving to exit the room.

* * *

Tsunade and Jiraiya sat in the meeting room, having an alarming amount of papers out on the table between them. Nagato walked in the room with Itachi following behind him.

"So what's this all about," Nagato asked.

"We've got some things we want to go over," Tsunade replied. "Where are Yahiko and Konan?"

"Obito told Konan about Konoha dealing with the Kurosuki Family," Itachi answered.

Tsunade sighed with aggravation while Jiraiya simply chuckled. He always appreciated a good joke, but Tsunade hated pointless fights.

"That's one of the things we need to talk about," Jiraiya said, handing a paper over to Nagato. The redhead took the sheet and looked it over quickly.

"This is about the upcoming Chunin Exams," Nagato stated.

"Oh, wrong paper," Jiraiya replied, laughing at his own mistake. Nagato continued looking over the paper, reading the last half of it.

"You want to enter contestants into the Chunin Exams?" Itachi raised a questioning eyebrow before looking over to the two Sannin.

"Her idea," Jiraiya blurted out immediately as he pointed a finger at Tsunade.

"Get it out of my face or I'll break it," the busty blonde warned. Jiraiya quickly pulled his hand away, looking at his finger worryingly. "It's the perfect opportunity to get some intel on Konoha. Not only that, but with the proper planning we might even be able to attack and get close to Danzo."

"We already discussed that," Jiraiya said to Tsunade, "Konoha, Suna, Ame, and Iwa are all going to be there. There's no way we could even blow up an outhouse without being slaughtered."

"It's called sabotage, we're not going to wage all out war yet!"

"I've got to agree with Jiraiya," Nagato stated, waving the paper around. "The odds are way too bad. They're going to be suspicious of everyone, especially outsiders who aren't in Danzo's grip."

"Besides the only ones who could qualify are a Jinchuriki, a member of the Inuzuka clan, and a Hyuga. I don't think Ino and Tenten are quite ready for the Exams just yet, let alone Naruto, Kiba, or Neji."

"Another good point," Nagato said, pointing back to Itachi.

"We're working a way around that," Tsunade replied angrily. "We're making disguises which may or may not be ready by the time the Exams roll around anyway."

"What else," Nagato asked, trying not to enrage Tsunade anymore.

"We want to make a deal with the Kurosuki Family," Jiraiya replied.

"What," Nagato asked with disbelief.

"WHAT," Konan's voice boomed. The door flew open, revealing the angry blue haired kunoichi breathing heavily and eyes wide with rage. Nagato, Itachi, and Jiraiya all leaned away from Konan in fear of what she might do. "You want to make a **DEAL** with them!"

"If that doesn't work then we're going to kill them off," Tsunade replied, being the only one in the room who kept their composure.

"Can I go," Konan asked, calming down just a bit.

"Who else would we have sent," Tsunade replied with a sly smile crossing her face. Konan chuckled with a certain wickedness that caused Nagato, Itachi, and Jiraiya to lean away even further. "We're also sending Shizune and Hana."

"That's fine with—wait," Konan blinked once, narrowing her eyes on Tsunade. "Why all girls? What type of deal are you trying to make with them!"

Jiraiya's eyes moved up for a moment to ponder. A disgustingly perverted grin crossed his face as he laughed quietly, lost in his own fantasy. Tsunade delivered a strong, but not too strong, punch too his face, knocking the old man out of his chair.

"Nothing like that," Tsunade snapped. "A spy inside of the Kurosuki Family said they're only dealing with Konoha because they're scared. You tell them that we can make them disappear and they can fight against Konoha with us. If that doesn't work…make a few examples. Make them fear us enough to join."

"I like the way you think," Konan replied with a sinister tone. Itachi and Nagato looked to one another then back at Konan, half expecting her to break out in an evil laugh.

"One last thing," Tsunade began.

"Some of our scouts in the Land of Fire," Jiraiya groaned as he lifted himself back up, rubbing his pain stricken jaw, "said that they saw Orochimaru and a team of his students heading east, most likely towards the Land of Waves."

"How can we be sure they're going to the Land of Waves," Itachi asked.

"Gato of Gato Shipping Industries is there, and most likely he's trying to stop trading between that country and the mainland. Most likely Danzo is sending Orochimaru there to make sure that the former Land of Whirlpools gets wiped off the map to symbolize his getting rid of all ties to the First Hokage's ways permanently."

"That, or he's sending him there for the money," Jiraiya muttered. Tsunade shot a look over to her fellow Sannin, then turned back to the others.

"Either way, we want to send a team to the Land of Waves."

"To combat Orochimaru," Nagato questioned. "Who in the world would take on that mission?"

"Not to take on Orochimaru," Tsunade replied, "But in case that does happen, we're sending you, Itachi, and Obito. Orochimaru has a vast array of ninjutsu, and only the Sharingan or Rinnengan would have a chance of standing against him, that or sending Jiraiya or myself, but that would attract too much attention."

"Right, cause three guys with odd eyes totally DOESN'T attract attention," Nagato muttered. "What're we supposed to do in the Land of Waves?"

"Head to the ruined remains of the Uzushiogakure*," Jiraiya replied. "Most likely Danzo has gotten anything of value, but we're thinking of possibly setting up a base there."

"But why," Nagato asked.

"We have a feeling Danzo is going to try and create an alliance with the Mizukage: Yagura," Tsunade answered with a grim tone. "It makes sense for them. They're both ruthless, and they share similar goals. We want to see what we can do in the Land of Water to prevent that from happening, maybe get more allies."

"Our long term goal is to maybe frame one of the two countries from a crime that would prevent any alliances between the two," Jiraiya added. "We don't have to tell you what happens if the Land of Water joins Danzo's alliance." Nagato, Itachi, and Konan all nodded.

"Yahiko will be the team leader of the group we're sending to the Chunin Exams," Jiraiya began, "the rest of you have your assignments. Nagato, Itachi, find Obito and head out immediately." The two shinobi nodded then quickly exited the room. "Konan, Shizune and Hana are waiting in the medical wing and ready when you are."

"I'm already gone sir," Konan replied, rushing out of the room.

Jiraiya leaned back and looked to Tsunade who had her head lowered. This was the first big gamble that they were making against Danzo. Worry, skepticism and doubt filled their minds. All Jiraiya and Tsunade could do now was hope that things would fall to their favor.

* * *

*Village Hidden among the Whirling Tides, see Naruto chapter 500

Read and review, please and thank you =D


	5. Kurosuki Family

"No," Yahiko exclaimed. "No, no, no HELL no! I am NOT babysitting these three!"

Kiba, Neji, and Naruto all had their arms crossed with an angry look on their faces. Jiraiya stood between the three youths and his former orange haired student, and sighed with an exhausted look.

"Look, there's no one else who can take them to the Chunin Exams. And this may be our ONLY chance to infiltrate Konoha for any information."

"I don't care! Find someone else because I'm not dealing with these three brats and that's final!"

Less than an hour later, Yahiko had the same moping look that Naruto, Neji, and Kiba had a moment ago. He stood in the medical wing, currently empty, waiting for Tsunade to apply the disguises to the three boys.

"Alright, Neji you're first." The rogue Hyuga approached the medical Sannin who was dipping her fingertips in a jar. "Obviously your eyes are a distinct giveaway of your heritage, so I've got a simple solution. We're going to put scars around your eyes, and put a bandana around your head. This way your Byakugan will remain active at all times and nobody will be able to tell."

"So how do we fake scars exactly," Neji asked.

"Something we girls like to use called makeup!" Tsunade quickly started dabbing her fingers around Neji's eyes.

Around ten minutes later, Tsunade took a huge step back, showing the end result of her work. Neji looked up at the Sannin then over to his two friends, whose eyes were wide.

"Dude, it looks like your eyes got messed up badly," Kiba stated with shock.

"And for the final touches," Tsunade continued, pulling out a black bandana. The Sannin leaned forward and wrapped it around Neji's eyes and tied it behind his head. "Now, activate your Byakugan."

"Yes ma'am." Neji closed his eyes then activated his doujutsu. The veins running to his eyes couldn't be seen under the cloth. As far as anyone could tell, Neji just seemed like a blinded boy.

"How's it work?"

"I can see everything," Neji replied. "What does it look like to you guys?"

"Like you couldn't see a punch coming at you from a mile away," Kiba answered.

"Sweet," Neji muttered.

"Now, your story is that you can hear the distinctive sound waves from an opponent's movements to attack and defend yourself," Tsunade began. "Your eyes were damaged by an enemy's attack during a routine scouting mission so you trained your ears to be your eyes."

"Understood ma'am," Neji replied before walking next to Naruto.

"Kiba, you're next." The energetic Inuzuka walked forward and took a seat on the stool in front of the Sannin. "The main issues with you are your cheek marks and your eyes. Now, we've developed a special type of cream that should cover your marks, even if you get punched or thrown in water etcetera. And for your eyes we have contacts which will disguise the feral look."

Without another word, Tsunade started to apply the cream to Kiba's face. While that was happening, Naruto was testing out Neji's eyesight by waving his hands, holding up a certain number of fingers, and even trying to strike him at one point. Despite the distraction of Naruto fooling around, Tsunade managed to apply the makeup perfectly.

"There we go," Tsunade announced. Neji and Naruto looked over, and their jaws immediately dropped. Kiba's face no longer had his clan marks, and instead of the slit pupils, he had normal, round pupils.

"Kiba," Neji muttered.

"Dude, you look normal!"

"Yeah, yeah," the young Inuzuka muttered. "Don't rub it in jerks…"

"Naruto, you're next. All I have to do is cover the whisker marks and you should be ready." The blonde Jinchuriki nodded once then followed Tsunade's fingers with his eyes as they pressed against his cheek.

* * *

There were countless people working on the large bridge that was meant to connect with the mainland. This was their only hope of breaking free from Gato's control. Even though the business tycoon had thugs that killed and intimidated many, everyone knew the only hope they had was to connect with the mainland immediately.

Orochimaru approached the small village that was so eager to break free of Gato's control. It was a perfect example of depression and poverty. A piece of filth for a village in the eyes of the sinister snake. Behind him were his five students and an army of thugs Gato hired. They were to simply destroy the bridge and kill the workers, but Orochimaru had other thoughts in mind.

Danzo wanted to begin a campaign in the Land of Water, what better way to start than to have a fortress in the one country between it and the Land of Fire? He would tear this village down and build a new one for Danzo's forces, ready to invade to ally themselves with the Mizukage.

Normally Orochimaru only looked out for number one, and there were very few individuals he cared about. The only reason Orochimaru truly cared for Danzo's power or praise wasn't because he cared for the village's strength or he was loyal to Danzo. Orochimaru knew that he was the prime candidate for the title of fourth Hokage, and he would inherit everything that Danzo has already built, thus putting himself on the thrown for power.

"Lord Orochimaru," Kimimaro spoke, "shall we commence the attack?"

"Yes," the Sannin spoke with a gleeful pleasure, "burn this village to the ground. Leave nothing standing." Gato's thugs charged forward, screaming like a bloodthirsty mob. Orochimaru's students waited until the thugs had passed before their master spoke again. "Try and leave a few villagers alive. We could use some extra slaves to help rebuild our new fortress."

"Yes master," the five students replied before bolting forward. Orochimaru snickered to himself then calmly approached the village, hearing the sounds of people's bloodcurdling shrieks of terror.

* * *

Yahiko was sulking down the path to Konoha while the three immature brats he was assigned to deal with yapped about mindless subjects. He should be back home planning ways to extract information, or how to build their numbers, but no. He was stuck babysitting during the Chunin Exams. Yes, Tsunade and Jiraiya said that this was his opportunity to infiltrate the village and find information, but Yahiko knew that most of his responsibilities would involve taking care of these three.

"Hey, Yahiko sensei," Naruto's voice called out. The orange haired shinobi twitched irritably, growing even more agitated by being called sensei. "Shouldn't we have different names? Ya know, aliases or whatever?"

"Yeah, you should," Yahiko muttered. "Well, start thinking." Naruto sighed, narrowing his eyes angrily at the older spiky haired shinobi. _'Stupid mission that's got me running around babysitting these stupid brats because some stupid busty blonde sent out every other stupid person who could be their sensei so I'm stuck with this stupid assignment…'_

"Hey Neji, doesn't leaving your Byakugan on drain your chakra," Naruto asked.

"No, I just need chakra to activate it. I don't have to feed my eyes chakra like a normal ninjutsu. But, let's get our names down before Yahiko-sama gets even angrier than he already is."

"Alright, I think my name should be…Ryu."

"Ryu," Neji repeated. "That's a cool name."

"Yeah," Kiba agreed. "Why can't I have that name?"

"I came up with it first," Naruto snapped. "Now you two should think of good names."

"How about…Fang, it's simple, and easy to remember," Kiba replied.

"Weak," Neji exclaimed. Kiba shot a glare at his friend. The young Hyuga looked to the sky, trying to think of an appropriate alias. "Hizashi…"

Naruto and Kiba both looked over at their friend, slightly surprised with the choice. Yahiko even glanced back, knowing the meaning behind that name. A slight smirk formed across Neji's face as he looked up to his two best friends who smiled back warmly. Yahiko huffed then moved his gaze back down the path.

"Wait," Naruto exclaimed, "We need last names! CRAP!"

"No we don't," Yahiko replied. "We'll just say we're wandering shinobi who freelance in various villages, large and small."

"Will Konoha believe such a lie," Neji asked.

"Normally wandering shinobi would have to pay twice the entree fee in any village. The reason is so that some villages wouldn't want to reveal the surnames of some of their shinobi, mainly the ones holding kekkei genkai or members from powerful clans, so they just decided to charge more money for those without surnames. Wandering shinobi or mercenaries would still have to pay double amount even if they had proof they hold no allegiances to one village."

"So why would some wandering shinobi want to join the Chunin Exams if they're not apart of any village," Kiba questioned.

"To increase their profits," Yahiko answered. "If villages are looking to hire freelancers or mercenaries, they're going to go for a formal ranking. Young Genin, while very rare in the merc business, usually don't get hired for anything more dangerous than cheap manual labor. Chunin get hired for many missions, and can usually grow a reputation from there. Most mercs don't get much higher than Chunin and just rise through the ranks after that. We'll say we're from a mercenary guild." Yahiko held out a piece of paper to his side. "Paperwork officially stating that we're a group from the Phoenix Merc group. Their leader has owed a few debts to Jiraiya, and they're an unofficial part of our group."

"Why unofficial," Naruto asked.

"Their leader and Jiraiya are friends, but the leader doesn't want to risk his income by joining up with a group of rebels who hardly have ten thousand followers. Hell, Konoha alone has nearly twenty thousand shinobi altogether after the Kyuubi attack. Combine that with the Iwa, Suna, and Ame and they're practically invincible. The only chance we could have is if Kumo and Kiri joined forces. Unfortunately, Kumo is too proud and untrusting of every other country, while Kiri is a ruthless and isolated so the odds of an alliance are slim to none."

Yahiko shook his head and gave a blank stare at nothing, "Why am I telling you all this?"

"Cause we asked," Neji replied. Yahiko sighed to himself, confused as to why he went into so much detail for these kids.

Konan kept an eye on the trees and forest around her. This place was around the area where Itachi came into contact with Konoha. Who knows what kind of surprises they could expect.

"Do you have a scent yet Hana-san," Shizune asked.

"I'm working on it…"

* * *

Konan turned her head and followed her two partners as they moved down the trail. If there were any shinobi watching them Hana would most likely be able to sniff them out. She was a prime example of the Inuzuka lineage: impeccable senses, strong drive, and independent. Despite this she was much more level headed than Kiba or even their late mother. Hana's sniffed a bit more intently, raising her nose in the air.

"I think I got something…" The kunoichi team moved faster as Hana followed the faint scent. "Definitely got something!" The team went full speed, following Hana through trees and bushes. The young Inuzuka suddenly stopped with the others freezing behind her. "I have a bunch of new scents…I think the Kurosuki Family is right up here."

"Do we have a plan," Shizune asked Konan.

"Ask them politely to join our group so that they won't have to serve Konoha."

"And if that doesn't work," Hana questioned.

"Get ready for a fight," Konan stated before walking forward.

The kunoichi came out of a bush and into the clearing, seeing several men sitting around campfires looking extremely bored. One man nudged his partner then pointed him towards the approaching kunoichi. The group stood up and stood in the way of the trio of kunoichi.

"What're you doing here," the man asked before the kunoichi could even stop. The group stopped a few feet away from the Kurosuki gang.

"We want to talk to your leader; Raiga." The group looked to each other then back at Konan.

"Why do you want to see Raiga-sama?"

"We want to talk about an alliance."

"An alliance to whom," the man asked. His eyes narrowed and his body tensed along with his friends.

"We know this gang is affiliated with Konoha," Konan snapped. Shizune and Hana looked to the blue haired kunoichi. Their faces remained calm, but their hearts raced slightly. "We're a group that doesn't want that to happen, so we're going to ask you to join."

"Keep dreamin girl," the man snapped, raising his fist. A pair of small blades popped out from his gauntlet. "I'd suggest you run along now before Raiga-sama shows up."

"I'm afraid I'm not going to leave," Konan seethed, her eyes hardening at the Kurosuki thug.

"Wait," a voice called out. All of the Kurosuki gang stood to their feet, turning to the opposite side of the camp, seeing a towering figure with a hump on his back. "Who are you three?"

"Like I said: we're a group that doesn't want you to be with Konoha, so we're going to ask you to join us, or die," Konan repeated. The entire gang started laughing while Raiga slowly walked forward.

"What group would that be," Raiga questioned. "You're obviously not from Kirigakure otherwise you would just attack on sight. That only leaves Kumogakure, except they tried a few months ago with a team twice your size…and I killed them. So…you must be a rogue group of shinobi who doesn't like Konoha. And judging from the marks on that one's cheeks," Hana placed her fingers against her cheeks, mentally cursing herself, "she's from the Inuzuka Clan, formerly of Konoha before Danzo-sama ordered their complete eradication otherwise known as the Inuzuka Genocide. So…you three must be out to overthrow Danzo-sama. So, if we keep you alive and hand you over to Konoha we'd most likely get a reward. Men, deal with these witches and keep at least one of them alive."

"What'd he call us," Shizune asked, her temper rising.

"Well," Konan began, "guess we're doing this my way."

Shizune shot forward towards a group of Kurosuki thugs. One wielding a halberd swung for her head. Shizune ducked and flipped her wrist, revealing a scalpel from her overly long sleeves. She quickly sliced across the man's throat, spun around to a man wielding a sword and stabbed into thigh, puncturing one of the man's arteries.

"Try to keep some of them alive," Hana shouted as she jumped on a man's back, launching herself into the chest of a second man. She rolled onto her feet then punched a thug who charged her across the face. "There's no reason to recruit them if there's nobody to recruit!"

Konan stepped to her right, knocking a man to the side with her foot. She stepped back to her left then elbowed a second thug in the gut, causing him to keel over. The third thug who charged was surprisingly quick and sliced Konan right down the middle with a sleek katana. He smirked for a moment until the two halves of the blue haired woman exploded into hundreds of sheets of paper.

"What the hell," one of the thugs shouted.

"What's going on?"

A few dozen pieces of paper hardened while the rest were used as distractions. The paper flew forward, slicing several gang members in a blinding white whirlwind. The gang members all cried out with fear as they looked about frantically, unsure of what to do. The whirlwind finally stopped, a few pieces of paper swirled up and combined to form Konan's upper body.

"Well, ready to join?" The thugs all trembled then looked back to Raiga.

"Impressive," the hooded swordsmen admitted.

He pulled out two swords with spikes coming out. Raiga aimed the tip out at Konan and fired a blast of lighting. Konan flew apart into countless papers once again, creating a smaller but more concentrated whirlwind around the swordsmen. Raiga tapped his blades together, sparking lighting to surround his entire body.

"Lightning Strike Armor," Raiga exclaimed. Konan's papers continued swirling around while the woman herself thought of a way to get past the armor. "What's wrong? Too afraid to attack me?" The papers started rotating faster and faster. Raiga smirked until he realized something. The winds were powerful enough to weaken his Lightning Strike Armor. _'No, it can't be!'_ The papers shot away from Raiga, using the winds that were created to rip Raiga's armor apart. "Damn it!"

Shizune and Hana came from either of Raiga's sides. The swordsmen quickly shot up in the air, flipping backwards as he held his swords out. Two bolts of lightning shot from the sky and struck both swords, covering them both in lightning.

"Fangs of Lightning," Raiga shouted as a powerful lightning bolt came from the sky, shooting down towards Shizune and Hana.

The kunoichi gasped briefly as the bolt was about to strike. On impact, the lightning bolt caused a devastating explosion, causing the Kurosuki Family to cover their faces from the smoke that shot out. Raiga flipped backwards before landing on the ground. The smoke cleared, revealing a barrier of nothing but paper that shielded Shizune and Hana from the lightning bolt. Raiga's eyes widened with shock as did the rest of his gang. The paper scattered from the barrier around the kunoichi and assembled back into Konan, clothes slightly tattered and showing a few scratches from the attack.

"Below," a soft voice told Raiga. The swordsmen spun around, slicing a pillar of paper that tried to attack him. The papers reassembled, causing Raiga to continually slice the papers. "One of them is charging."

Raiga sprung to the side as Shizune attempted to strike him. The swordsmen twirled his swords, spun around then fired a bolt of lightning from his swords. Shizune shot forward as the bolt hit the ground, causing a small explosion. The blast threw Shizune forward, causing her to roll a few times uncontrollably before coming to a stop. Raiga landed on his feet then snapped his eyes over. Hana was spinning around, using her Tunneling Fang ability. Raiga raised his Lightning Strike Armor at the last second as the brown haired kunoichi struck him. On impact, all the lightning went straight towards Hana and exploded due to the force of her attack. The blast sent both combatants flying back. Hana bounced once, flipped head over heels and landed on her feet while Raiga simply landed and skidded to a stop.

"You okay Ranmaru," Raiga asked, shifting his eyes back.

"I'm just fine Raiga-sama," the soft voice replied.

Konan moved next to Hana who was twitching slightly, a side affect from the lightning jutsu. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Hana replied. "A little shaky, but nothing I can't handle. How do we handle this? It's like he has eyes in the back of his head. He dodges any surprise attack and counters any attack he can't avoid."

"He's a tough opponent, but that doesn't mean he's unbeatable…"

Hana huffed slightly, but then her eyes snapped open. She sniffed the air a few times, picking up two scents from Raiga. The first smelled like death, dirt, and metal, obviously being more dominant than the second scent.

"There's two people we're fighting," Hana stated. Konan snapped her head over to Hana, examining her shocked expression quizzically. "It's faint and I hardly even noticed it before, but I'm sure that Raiga is giving off two different scents. That could be how he's able to dodge our surprise attacks."

"Where's the scent coming from," Konan asked, making sure her voice was low enough so Raiga couldn't hear.

"I would assume that the second person is that inhuman hump on his back," Hana replied. "He's not hunched over so it's not hunch back, and he got his swords from his hip so it's not a pack for his weapons. It has to be a second person…"

"Right," Konan replied, breaking herself up into paper. Hana watched, knowing Konan was going to tell Shizune.

Hana ran forward, eyes focused solely on Raiga. The swordsmen screamed as he slammed his swords into the ground, splitting the ground in half with a powerful blast of lightning. Hana leaped in the air and hurled three kunai at Raiga. The swordsmen lifted his blades up, slicing the kunai into pieces.

Hana spun around, pulling out a chain with a ball weigh on the end then hurled it forward. The chain spun around Raiga's hand. Hana then pulled back on the chain, causing Raiga's hand to move forward. The swordsmen grunted as he tried to pull back. Hana began spinning around, using her Tunneling Fang to wrap the chain around her body, pulling Raiga forward. The swordsmen screamed as he tried to plant his feet down, but all that caused was him skidding forward.

"Enough," Raiga shouted. Hana smirked to herself, slowing her Tunneling Fang down slightly.

"Raiga, no," Ranmaru shouted. On the weight of the chain was the symbol often found on paper bombs. All it needed was a surge of chakra.

Raiga's sword lit up with lightning, flowing through his arm and into the chain. As it got to the weight, the end of the metal weapon exploded, burning Raiga's cloak, consuming his arm in fire. The swordsmen screamed with agony as his cloak slowly flew off, including the pouch on his back holding a small boy.

"Ranmaru," Raiga shouted. In a flash, Shizune showed up, taking the boy before he hit the ground and shot towards Hana. "NO! Idiots, stop them!"

The Kurosuki goons all looked to each other skeptically. A few of the gang members ran towards the three kunoichi. A wall of paper cut off the gang, circled around and encased the Kurosuki thugs in a bubble. The paper swung around, slamming into a stone wall, bouncing into another stone wall before slamming into the ground and bouncing high into the air. The bubble opened, releasing the goons who hit the ground in an unconscious pile.

The paper all reformed to Konan's upper body, glaring at the remaining gang, "Stay out of this, got it?" The conscious gang members all nodded, whimpering slightly with fear.

Raiga grunted as he connected his swords together into a double bladed sword, holding them both with one hand as his stub of an arm was bleeding. Konan reassembled herself from the feet down, walking forward as she reformed.

"Give Ranmaru back," Raiga shouted. Shizune looked to the young boy in her arms. He had short purple hair with big brown eyes.

"Well, looks like we're bargaining now," Konan stated.

"NO," Raiga boomed. "Give him back or I'll kill you all right now!"

"With one hand and without this boy telling you where your enemies are," Hana questioned. Raiga's face twitched slightly with annoyance, confirming Hana's thoughts. "I don't think you stand much of a chance."

"Give…him back NOW!" Raiga raised his sword into the air bringing a powerful bolt of lightning down onto his weapon.

"Raiga-sama," Ranmaru muttered quietly. Shizune looked down at the boy, noticing he received a few burns from the explosion.

"I'm going to heal him," Shizune stated. "Think you can handle him on your own?"

"Not a problem," Hana replied. Shizune removed the pouched that held Ranmaru, revealing that the burns were more extensive than she thought.

"Plan of action Konan-san," Hana asked.

"I'll go in for the initial strike then you finish him off. Getting that sword away from him will cripple him." Hana nodded. Konan exploded outward into a storm of papers.

The papers shot forward in a swirling tornado. Raiga fired a bolt of lightning directly into the center. The papers sped up, creating a swirling whirlwind which broke the lightning apart with the powerful wind. Raiga screamed as he slammed his blade into the ground, shooting another bolt of lightning through the ground. The lightning shot up from the ground once it got under the papers. A blinding flash of lightning engulfed all the papers. Konan flew out from the wall of lightning, smoking, clothes torn even more, with cuts and dirt all over her face.

Hana managed to sneak up once the wall of lightning faded, socking Raiga in the face as hard as she could for Konan. Raiga stumbled back from the blow as Hana grabbed the hilt of the sword with her feet then shot herself away from Raiga using her hands. The Inuzuka kunoichi skidded to a stop, twirling the double bladed sword around before snapping them apart.

"Give those back," Raiga shouted to Hana.

"You have on chance to join us," Hana snapped.

"Never," Raiga seethed. "Konoha, Danzo, no one can stand against them! I'd be insane to stand against them! Danzo has agreed that he'd keep Kirigakure off by back as long as I do what he says! There's no way that I'm going against him!"

"Fine then," Hana snapped, spinning the swords around her fingers so naturally. Raiga's eyes narrowed in anger that someone could use his swords with such ease.

Hana shot forward while Raiga braced himself. Hana jumped into the air and used her Tunneling Fang, holding the two swords out in front of her. She dove through the ground and tunneled through. Raiga's eyes widened with shock as he started jumping back, trying to get away from wherever she would attack. The ground broke up from behind Raiga. The swordsmen screamed as he swung his massive arm back, hitting nothing. Suddenly, Raiga cried out as something tore his back out. Hana's Tunneling Fang, with the Lightning Fangs ripped Raiga in half. The Inuzuka threw her feet out, skidding to a halt as Raiga's two halves fell to the ground. Hana lowered her arms, letting the blood drip from the swords from the deceased Raiga.

Ranmaru's eyes were wide with shock. Shizune blinked with confusion as she looked back. It was luck that her body had covered the gory sight, but the look on Ranmaru's face was a shocked and tormented as if he witnessed it with his own eyes. Tears rolled down the young boy's face as he started to sob uncontrollably. Shizune's eyes softened at the sight as she continued to heal the burns on the boy's body.

Hana walked towards the Kurosuki Family, flinging the blood off of the two swords. The gang was in awe, gapping with shock even as Hana stopped in front of them. The Inuzuka kunoichi pointed the tip of one blade at the gang, bringing their attention to her.

"Your leader is dead," Hana said coldly. "You're no longer required to follow him, nor do Konoha's dirty business. I ask you to please join our group and fight against Danzo's oppression. As long as Danzo rules nearly half of the world there will never be a moment of peace for any of you. There's a chance Konoha knows who you all are and they'll try to hunt you down to make you work for them again. If you join us, you can disappear and fight against Konoha and bring about a new world of peace. Please help us…"

Shizune looked up to Hana then down to Ranmaru. _'She certainly has a way with words…'_

"Listen lady…we became apart of this gang so we could get some extra money," one thug stated. "We're not revolutionaries and we're certainly not willing to-,"

One young man walked forward followed by four of his friends. The gang looked on in shock before another tall man walked forward. More members stepped forward by the handfuls. Nearly one third of the gang, around fifty or so people was standing behind Hana. A few members were standing next to Shizune, asking if they could help.

"Alright, so a few people think they can be revolutionaries," the same man from before snapped. "What makes you think you can stand against Konoha?"

"What makes you think your broken gang has a chance without Raiga backing you up?"

A majority of the remaining gang members looked to each other skeptically. One young man came forward quickly at that part, followed by around two dozen more gang members. Now a little over half of the gang was standing with Hana.

"Whatever," the man muttered. "I'm not throwing my life away for some stupid dream…" Hana scoffed then let the rest of the gang walk off.

"Well," Shizune said as she finished healing Ranmaru. "That was successful."

"I certainly hope so," Hana muttered. The Inuzuka turned to the nearest Kurosuki soldier. "Do you guys have an area where you keep your rations, supplies, and weapons?"

"Yeah," the bearded man replied. "We don't have much of anything besides weapons and money. We usually hunt for food and only eat what we need."

"That's better than nothing," Hana stated. "Can we take it all to our base or do we need wagons?"

"We should be able to take it all on our own," the man answered.

"Alright, let's leave as soon as possible," Hana ordered. The man nodded then ran off with the rest of the thugs following him.

Hana looked over, seeing a few new recruits helping Konan up as she slowly stirred herself awake. The blue haired kunoichi looked up, noticing Kurosuki goons running into their camp while Hana, hands on her hips, watched them like a military general. Konan stood to her feet and walked over to the Inuzuka kunoichi.

"So what happened," Konan asked, rubbing the back of her head.

"Raiga is dead, and a great deal of the Kurosuki Family has agreed to join our cause," Hana answered. "I also got Raiga's swords." The Inuzuka held up the blades in emphasis.

"Good job," Konan said with a smile. "What about the rest of the gang?"

"I'm assuming they're going to try to make it on their own as a gang of thugs. They didn't feel like throwing their lives away for our cause." Konan sighed then looked out the opposite direction. "Should I have forced them to join us?"

"No, if you did we'd be no better than Konoha," Konan replied. "You made the right choice by giving these people an option."

"Thank you Konan-san."

The Kurosuki gang started coming back with rations, money, weapons and just about everything they could get their hands on. They piled everything into a few small wagons that they offered to pull. After nearly an hour, they were about ready to leave after getting the last of their supplies. Shizune had placed Ranmaru back into a new pouch that the group found in Raiga's tent, and placed the young boy on her back.

"You shouldn't have healed me," the boy muttered. "I'd rather be dead." Shizune looked over her shoulder at the depressed boy. "Without Raiga-sama…I should just be dead…"

"That's not true," Shizune replied. "I know it's tough to see it right now, but your entire life is ahead of you Ranmaru-kun. You could be so much more without Raiga to influence you."

"He saved me…he gave me a purpose…and now that he's gone I have no purpose…" Shizune smiled and started to walk up to Hana and Konan.

"You're so young Ranmaru-kun. You have your entire life ahead of you. I'm sure you'll find a new purpose without Raiga."

"You don't know that," the depressed cripple snapped. Shizune stopped next to her partners, Hana watching the last of the supplies being gathered while Konan turned to the medical ninja.

"We ready to go," Shizune asked.

"I think so," Hana replied, turning to Shizune.

"Alright boys," Konan shouted. "We need to move fast so no one can pick up on us so don't slow down! Our base is about an hour away, so don't fall behind cause we're not going to slow down for each one of you, got it?"

"Yes ma'am," the gang shouted. Most of the new recruits already feared Konan from encountering her in battle, or one of the many who was bashed around in the paper bubble.

"Then let's move," Konan said to Hana and Shizune. The three kunoichi ran ahead of the gang who followed behind as quickly as possible.

* * *

Wow, I guess I got carried away with the Raiga fight…hopefully it was good and didn't seem rushed to you all. There will be more about Ranmaru in the future, so no worries. Thanks for reading, please leave reviews =)


	6. Setting the Stage

It was nearly nighttime whenever Konan, Hana, and Shizune returned with the new Kurosuki recruits. There to greet them was Jiraiya as well as a few other rogue shinobi behind him. The Sannin had his arms crossed over his broad chest and a smile on his face at the new recruits. The three kunoichi stopped in front of Jiraiya and bowed before him.

"I take it that you coming back with all these ninja means that your mission was a success," Jiraiya asked.

"Yep," Hana replied. "Raiga couldn't be convinced so I took him out. Here are his swords." Hana handed the blades to Jiraiya who took them carefully.

"I'd better hide these in a safe place. We'd all be in some serious trouble if Naruto ever found these." The three kunoichi laughed weakly with complete hysteria at the thought of the young Jinchuriki wielding such destructive weapons. "You all," Jiraiya snapped, turning to the ninja behind him. "Show the new recruits where they can put the supplies and everything else."

"Yes sir, alright men follow us." The shinobi behind Jiraiya moved into the underground fortress while the Kurosuki gang followed after them. Jiraiya turned his head to the three kunoichi before he noticed Ranmaru on Shizune's back.

"Well who's the little guy," Jiraiya asked.

"His name is Ranmaru," Konan replied. "He was with Raiga, and we believe he has a kekkei genkai. While he was on Raiga's back, he was able to tell him how to counter all of our moves. Apparently he has some kind of dojutsu like that of the Byakugan or Sharingan." Jiraiya placed his hand to his chin and hummed.

"I've never heard of a kekkei genkai like that," Jiraiya admitted. _'Perhaps it's some type of mutation…?'_ The Sannin removed his hand then smiled at Ranmaru, who was staring sadly into empty space.

"He and Raiga were very close," Shizune explained, noticing Jiraiya's confused expression.

"Well, I guess I could take him to a room to rest." Konan raised a questioning eyebrow to her former sensei. "I doubt he's going to run anywhere anytime soon." Shizune took the pouch carrying Ranmaru off her back then handed him to Jiraiya. The Sannin slung the boy onto his back then handed the Lightning Fangs to Konan. "You put these away and all three of you get some rest. I'll report your mission to Tsunade."

"Tsunade will want us to report to her directly Jiraiya sensei," Konan stated.

"And you will, in the morning. Until then, you reported to me and I'll report what we know to her. You all deserve some rest." The kunoichi nodded as Jiraiya turned and walked off.

"Who else was sent out on missions besides us," Hana asked as she followed Konan and Shizune.

"Yahiko was sent out with Naruto, Neji, and your bother," Konan stated. "But you know that already. Itachi, Nagato, and Obito were sent out to the Land of Waves to see if there was anywhere we could set up a base at." Hana hummed and nodded once. "Other than that I don't think there was anyone you care about that was shipped out." Hana scrunched her nose and made a face at the back of Konan's head.

"Itachi-kun can take care of himself Hana," Shizune said. "He's a very skilled shinobi." Hana shifted her eyes to Shizune then back ahead. She was smarter than to let herself get jealous over such stupid things like someone else calling him Itachi-kun. "Oh crap, I've got to go check on the medical wing! I totally forgot! I'll see you both later okay?" Shizune quickly ran down one of the halls as Konan and Hana watched her.

"That girl has way too many things to take care of," Konan sighed. Hana nodded with agreement then continued towards the barracks.

Jiraiya walked quietly through the empty halls in the barracks which were made recently. He looked back, seeing the sadness in Ranmaru's eyes still. Jiraiya turned his head back around with a slight smile on his face.

"My name is Jiraiya," the Sannin began. Ranmaru made no sign of acknowledgement or life for that matter. "I originally came from Konoha. I'm one of the legendary three Sannin." Despite remaining silent, Ranmaru was impressed to say the least. Jiraiya looked back at the boy then sighed, slightly peeved. "I trained Konoha's Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze." Ranmaru simply hummed in response. Jiraiya looked back, giving the boy a slight smile. "You're not much of a talker are you?" Again there was no reply. "I suppose I can't blame you. I bet you think we're just evil people who killed your master and kidnapped you." Ranmaru's eyes narrowed slightly, wanting to say something. "Sheesh, I hope someone gets you talking sometime soon. Maybe we shouldn't have sent Naruto out on a mission. Naruto is the son of Minato, and is my godson."

"You talk a lot," Ranmaru finally said. Jiraiya threw his head back and laughed heartily. Ranmaru had no response as his eyes lowered back to the ground.

"Well, here's your room," Jiraiya stated, sliding open a door. Ranmaru looked in and was surprised to see it was surprisingly larger than expected. It had a normal bed, nightstand, and a desk with a chair. "It's vacant so you got first dips." Jiraiya walked up and pulled Ranmaru out of his pouch and placed him on the bed, resting the boy's head on the pillow. Ranmaru felt his face heat up slightly, embarrassed at the attention he was receiving. Jiraiya pulled the blankets up to Ranmaru's neck and tucked him in snuggly. "You hungry? I can get you some food before you go to bed?"

"No thank you," Ranmaru replied.

"Water, anything?" Ranmaru shook his head. Jiraiya stood up, and headed towards the door before turning around. "Lamp on or off?"

"I don't care…" Jiraiya nodded then walked over to the lamp and blew out the light.

"Goodnight Ranmaru, see you in the morning." The boy stayed silent, staring directly at the darkness. Jiraiya closed the door then headed out for Tsunade's office.

* * *

In the Land of Waves, Orochimaru stood in front of a group of village survivors and bridge builders. Gato's thugs were throwing the dead bodies into a pile before setting it on fire. There were five other piles of flaming corpses and only four groups of survivors that cowered in front of the shinobi.

"Orochimaru," a voice shouted. The Sannin turned his head, a careless look on his face as he watched the angry, short businessman storming up to him. "What the hell? I ordered for you to kill everyone here, not save them!"

"Well the board members of your company think it would be better if the village's inhabitants were alive."

"Who the hell cares? I pay _them_! They listen to _me_, and so do you damn it!" Suddenly, Orochimaru's hand seized Gato by the throat and lifted the man off his feet. The man's legs kicked around desperately, trying to find solid ground.

"I work for Danzo," Orochimaru corrected. "And he spoke with your board members. They said that they'd be more than willing to hand the company over to the Land of Fire as long as they still get a portion of the profits the company makes. Still, it would be under the direct control of the Daimyo. All they need is you out of the way."

"Son…of a…bitch!" Orochimaru chuckled before tightening his grip, breaking Gato's neck. The Sannin threw the limp carcass to the side then turned to the survivors.

"You all are now slaves of Konoha," Orochimaru declared. "You will work on building a bridge to the mainland, only so that Konoha may use it. You all will have some time to rebuild your homes while my students and I head back to Konoha." Orochimaru turned to the thugs who were all looking at one another with confusion. "You petty criminals, will you work for Konoha?"

"Will we get paid," one thug asked.

"You'll get to live," Orochimaru stated.

The thugs looked to each other then back at the shinobi and charged. Orochimaru chuckled coldly. He expected as much. His five students all shot past him and into the group of thugs. There were screams of anguish and bloodshed and less than a minute later, all the thugs were dead. Orochimaru turned back to the citizens with a smile.

"You all will be able to rebuild as many homes as you can, but a second Konoha squad will be sent in to watch over you. I wouldn't suggest trying to leave this island by the way." Orochimaru flashed his teeth then turned around and walked off with his students following behind him.

"We placed the traps at the docks just like you suggested lord Orochimaru," Sakon whispered. "If they make a run for their boats, it'll be goodbye for them." Orochimaru chuckled then disappeared into the forest.

In the distance, Nagato and Obito were crouched in a pair of nearby bushes, watching the newly founded slaves of Konoha. They looked to each other then quickly and quietly shot away.

Itachi was keeping watch over their small boat while Obito and Nagato went on a scouting trip. They didn't use the docks for the obvious reason that it would alert the island of their presence. Itachi turned, hearing his two comrades before they could even land on the ground.

"Well, good news and bad news," Obito sighed. "Orochimaru and his team have left, and Gato and his thugs are dead. Bad news is that apparently Orochimaru wants the bridge to be built so that Konoha can use this island for some reason…"

"Most likely to expand Danzo's reach to the Land of Water," Nagato stated. "We can't let that happen. We must do something."

"We can't do anything," Itachi murmured, slightly angry. "If we interfere we'd reveal our presence to everyone on the island. We should just scout Uzushiogakure like we were told to."

"So that's it," Obito questioned. "We don't even help these people and leave them to die?"

"That's not what we're doing," Nagato said, keeping calm. "Itachi's right, the best thing to do right now is complete our mission. We can help the citizens later, but for now we just complete our mission." Obito scowled angrily then snapped his head back to the village. "I know it's hard, but we have to do this Obito…" The spiky haired Uchiha sighed then nodded. Nagato turned and jumped into the trees, followed by Itachi then Obito.

* * *

Yahiko sat on the ground, staring at the fire between him and his three 'students' who were chatting about trivial things. The entire time, the orange haired man kept asking himself why he had to be put with these brats. Tsunade and Jiraiya both knew that he never got along with them. Yahiko didn't hate them per say, it's just that he believed that they should work more to help their cause, and not play pranks on everything that breathed. When he was their age, Yahiko already wanted to overthrow Hanzo and his ally Danzo. He sighed and shook his head, trying to focus on what to do in Konoha's Chunin Exams.

They were only a few hours away from Konoha, but they still needed some rest. As long as they didn't do anything suspicious to draw attention to themselves, Yahiko mainly, then they should be fine. Jiraiya told Yahiko that Naruto's seal was secure, so any chance of the Kyuubi's chakra slipping out was zero. Kiba had been told countless times beforehand to never use his clan's abilities, so hopefully he took those warnings to heart. Neji's eyes were completely covered, and despite that he knew better than to do anything reckless. The big problems were Naruto and Kiba during the exams, and Yahiko outside of the exams. No doubt Danzo would want him under constant watch by ANBU. The man's paranoia and fear was no doubt comparable to Hanzo's. Anyone suspicious would most likely be under watch. He couldn't do anything with Naruto and the others during the exam, even if he was Hokage. Still, Yahiko had to find a way to sneak through surveillance and extract information at the same time…

"DOWN BELOW," a voice echoed out. Yahiko and the other's looked up, seeing something falling down from the sky.

"Look out," Yahiko shouted, springing himself backwards. The three kids all sprung back as well just as something slammed onto their campsite with tremendous force.

Yahiko skidded to a halt, eyes focused on a giant spinning bolder. Naruto, Neji, and Kiba all looked at the spinning object with confusion, shock, and anger. Suddenly, the bolder stopped spinning then deflated into a young, stout man. Two more young boys, one with a bowl cut, bug eyes, and huge eyebrows, and another with a ponytail, chewing on a toothpick, appeared next to the stout young man.

"Uh, sorry about that," the one with the toothpick apologized.

"Indeed, our sensei was just testing himself," the bushy browed one stated.

"Testing himself how," Kiba snapped. "I don't think the fat kid is your sensei!"

"What'd you call me," the stout young man shouted. His two teammates held the spiky haired boy back from tearing Kiba apart.

Yahiko's eyes narrowed at the three students before scanning the area carefully. If there was a sensei, where was he? Suddenly, Yahiko's blue eyes snapped wide open as he ducked and rolled to the side as a man flew past him, landing against the ground like a meteorite. The orange haired man grunted as he rolled to a stop, facing the smoking crater that was caused by the man who attacked him.

"Very sharp reflexes," a loud voice boomed. The smoke cleared, revealing a man in a green jumpsuit wearing a typical Jonin vest. He had a bowl cut and bushier eyebrows than the young man behind him. "Not many people can dodge Might Guy!" Yahiko's eyes widened slightly. "Choji, Shikamaru, Lee, front and center!"

"Yes Guy sensei," the three students exclaimed before running and standing at attention in front of their master.

"Turn and apologize to this man for ruining his campsite," Guy snapped. The three students turned to Yahiko then bowed their heads.

"Our apologies," they said rather loudly. Naruto and Kiba looked to each other with shock then back at Guy.

"Hey, Bushy Brow sensei," Naruto shouted. "It was your fault that our campsite got screwed up wasn't it?" Guy placed his hand to his chin then hummed before turning back around.

"You're absolutely right young man," Guy called back. He spun to Yahiko then snapped his head down. "My apologies sir." Guy raised his head then extended his hand. "I'm Might Guy, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"N-nice to meet you too," Yahiko stammered, shaking the man's hand firmly.

"These are my students: Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara, and my prized student: Rock Lee!"

"My name is Yahiko, and those are my accomplices: Ryu, Fang, and Hizashi. We're a small mercenary group."

"Ah, mercenaries," Guy repeated, humming as he nodded his head over and over. "Here for the Chunin Exams I assume?"

"Yes," Yahiko replied with a nod.

"Well, it's only a few hours away, you can come with us!" Yahiko glanced back at his students, all of them still confused. This could be a golden opportunity, so long as they didn't give themselves away.

"Uh, alright then," Yahiko answered with a nod. He whistled to his students who ran up to him. "We're following Guy and his students to Konoha."

"Alright," Naruto replied with a careless shrug.

"Take the lead," Yahiko offered Guy.

"Alright, we'll be at the village in a matter of minutes!"

"Uh, let's try to go at a normal pace," Yahiko quickly snapped out. "We've been traveling for quite some time and we're very tired."

"Ah, very well then. We've been training most of the day, I suppose you three deserve some time off." Guy's students nodded to him. "Alright, it's this way gentleman! Stick close to me and don't get lost."

"Of course," Yahiko replied. Guy strode forward with his students following close behind him. Yahiko trailed behind a bit to talk to the other boys. "Guys," he whispered quickly. "Listen, be careful around these guys…"

"What," Kiba snapped with confusion in his tone. "These guys are clowns."

"Their sensei is the one I'm worried about," Yahiko hissed. "That's Might Guy, Konoha's Blood Red Beast." The boys tilted their heads to the side with confusion. "He didn't get that name for being a clown. He's renowned across the nations because he only uses taijutsu in battle and he's an S-class Jonin, same as Kakashi Hatake. The difference is that Guy is ruthless in battle and won't stop until he's beaten his enemy to a bloody pulp with his bare hands, even if the target is dead. His loyalty to the village is second to none, and aside from Kakashi, Guy is Danzo's personal go-to man."

"What about Orochimaru," Neji inquired.

Yahiko sighed, "You know what I mean…"

"Yahiko-kun," Guy exclaimed. "Come up here with me! I wish to compare our teaching methods if it's alright with you?"

"Of course, one moment please." Guy nodded then turned back forward. Yahiko bent down to his students' ear level. "Remember your names," he hissed. "Don't screw this up…please…"

The three nodded, their faces solemn. They watched as he walked up next to Guy. The trio knew if Yahiko said please, especially to them, then it was definitely serious. Guy's students walked back to Yahiko's students. Naruto and Lee observed each other carefully, the former a bit freaked out from Lee's unwavering stare. Kiba and Choji glared at one another, both angry at the other for different reasons. Shikamaru stared at Neji, who pretended he remained oblivious to the stare.

"So…" Naruto finally said, trailing off.

"I am Rock Lee," the bug eyed student suddenly shouted. "It is a pleasure to meet you!"

"Uh, hi, I'm Ryu. That's Fang, and the blind guy is Hizashi."

"He's blind," Shikamaru asked, raising his hand up to the bandages around the other boy's eyes. Neji quickly smacked the boy's hand away with a smirk on his face.

"I may be blind, but my other senses are razor sharp." Naruto rolled his eyes then looked away from his teammate.

'_Now that was cliché…'_

"So have you all ever been to Konoha before," Shikamaru asked.

"Not yet," Kiba answered.

"Oh you all will love it! Konoha is full of life and energy the likes of which you've never seen!" The three rogues gave blank stares at Lee, confused as to where the boy's energy came from. "Who wants to race to the village? Shikamaru-kun, how about you?"

"Guy sensei said no racing," Shikamaru sighed out. "Otherwise I'd love to."

"Darn, you are right. What to do to pass the time…?" The rogue trio looked to one another then shrugged, deciding to give up on understanding the bushy browed boy.

* * *

The trio of dojutsu users stood on a tree branch, overlooking the long forgotten remains of Uzushiogakure. They looked at it for several long moments before Nagato jumped forward first. Obito and Itachi both followed after him through the forest and towards the piles of rubble. The years had been unkind to the once proud village. Nothing stood and there were only piles of rubble that had moss growing over them. Random pools of water were scattered around as well, most likely due from the storms and rain. The rogues examined the area carefully, but nobody saw anything.

In the shadows of the rubble, two figures watched the three ninjas closely. "We've got guests," one figure whispered.

"Indeed, let's give them a proper welcome!" The duo shot out of the shadows, moving towards the shinobi in the back first.

Itachi's head snapped around as he saw something moving from the corner of his eyes. The younger Uchiha sprung straight into the air as the two opponents dressed fully in black, with metal claws attached by a long chain, shot past him. Itachi flipped over and landed in a crouched position, facing the two shinobi who were apparently from Kirigakure. The two turned around, focusing on Itachi. One of them looked over and saw that the other two were gone.

"What the," he muttered. "Where the hell did they-,"

Nagato and Obito shot behind the two attackers, kunai drawn, then imbedded the blades deep within the enemy's backs. They both groaned before their eyes rolled up in the back of their heads then limply fell to the ground.

"Odds are they weren't alone," Itachi stated. "There has to be someone else out there…"

"Agreed," Nagato replied, his eyes shifting back and forth. "Question is are they close by or somewhere else in the ruins of the village."

"I'm right here," a voice called out.

The trio turned around, seeing two silhouetted figures standing on a mound of rubble. They used their dojutsu to focus in on their targets, able to make out their features. The tallest one had spiky brown hair and a massive sword on his back and bandages wrapped all around his mouth, wearing a black tank top and arm warmers. The other figure wore an ANBU mask, and had his/her hair in a bun with two strands tied together that fell down the sides of his/her face. The tall one jumped up and landed across from the trio, making himself easier to see.

'_He's from Kiri as well,'_ Obito stated, noticing the headband.

"Your headband says your from the Land of Water, and the massive sword on your back means you're one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist," Nagato stated.

"And your eyes tell me that two of you are Uchiha, and you possess the Rinnengan," the man shot back. The trio looked to one another briefly and tensed up a bit. The swordsmen raised his hand up defensively and took a step back. "Relax, I'm not here to fight, even though you did kill my followers, the Demon Bros."

"The Demon Bros." the spiky haired Uchiha repeated. "Then you're…Zabuza Momochi?"

"In the flesh," the swordsmen replied with a formal bow. The masked man looked up and examined each person carefully. "You are Obito Uchiha, since you have the Sharingan and those distinctive orange goggles. You are Itachi Uchiha, the Uchiha Clan's most promising prodigy before their unfortunate massacre. And you…" Zabuza narrowed his eyes upon Nagato who tilted his head slightly. "You have the Rinnengan…"

"You said that already," Nagato shot back.

"Rumor in the underworld says that there's a rebellion building up to strike against Danzo's empire." The three rebels looked to one another for a moment before turning to Zabuza slowly.

"What of it," Itachi questioned as he raised his guard.

"I want in," Zabuza replied.

"You wha," Obito asked.

"I have no doubt you've heard of the recent Mizukage assassination attempt. I was in charge of it. My village, my country, my people have been ruled through fear for years now. I know Danzo wants to join with the Mizukage, Yagura. Unfortunately, the little shrimp wants an alliance with the Hokage as well. I don't want Yagura or Danzo's evil to spread throughout the world."

"When you were a child, you passed your village's academy graduation by killing every other child there," Obito stated. "You don't seem like the type of person who values freedom to me."

"You judge a man because of the area he was raised," Zabuza questioned. "I want to help you and you're turning me down? I came to this country, knowing that if your rebellion was worth anything that you'd come to the Land of Waves to establish a base to keep tabs on Danzo's campaign in the Land of Water. The Land of Waves is the first stepping stone to an alliance, and in turn the end of the world for all of us."

"Alright," Nagato began, "so you get to join our rebellion and fight for freedom and justice. That, or you're looking to disappear and we're your last hope of doing so." Zabuza's eyes narrowed before he scowled angrily.

"That's…just an added perk I suppose. I'm still more than willing to fight for your side. I was one of Kirkgakure's best assassins, an expert at the silent killing technique. Tell me that wouldn't be valuable for your side at all."

"Alright, so you get to disappear and fight with us against your country and village. What do we get?"

"I have secrets about Kirigakure. I know where there are secret outposts, secret caches, supply bases, and so much more. I know how to evade the hunter-ninja of Kiri. I know secrets that the Land of Water wants to hide and forget. Like the absence of one of their Jinchuriki…" The three rebels' eyes snapped wide open with shock at the last sentence. "I myself will no doubt be a valuable asset to your cause, not only that…" Zabuza turned and waved to the other figure that still stood on the pile of rubble. The figure jumped down and landed next to Zabuza, staring at the three dojutsu users. "This boy, Haku, as a kekkei genkai which is long gone and no longer exists in this world. Show them Haku."

"Yes Zabuza-sama." Haku made a hand sign with only one hand. Water from a nearby puddle shot up and formed a mirror or ice.

"Ice jutsus," Obito questioned. "The shinobi from the Land of Snow can use this jutsu!"

"There's one huge difference. Their ice melts, their ice breaks. Not Haku's. Not easily at least. Go ahead and try it." Itachi and Obito nodded to one another then made the exact same hand signs. The two exhaled two waves of fire upon the ice mirror and poured the flames out for nearly twenty seconds. The Uchiha stopped, revealing that the ice mirror hadn't melted in the slightest.

"Okay, that's impressive," Itachi admitted. Obito shot forward, pulling his arm back as he focused solely on the ice mirror. The spiky haired Uchiha cried out as he shot his fist into the mirror. A crack was heard on impact, causing Obito to spring backwards, holding his hand and whining in pain.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, owwie!"

"Very impressive," Itachi added with a smirk.

"His ice jutsus are very advanced despite his age," Zabuza continued. "Haku, show them your ultimate jutsu, but don't harm them."

"Yes sir," Haku nodded, making a two handed seal. "Don't move," the boy cautioned. Itachi and Nagato looked around as they were suddenly surrounded by many more ice mirrors. Haku shot forward, being absorbed by his jutsu, and his reflection being shown in every mirror.

"Shadow clones," Itachi asked, his eyes unable to tell which one was the real Haku.

"No," Nagato replied. "Those are reflections. Haku was it?"

"Yes sir?"

"Can you travel from mirror to mirror?"

"Yes I can. Do you wish for me to show you?" Nagato nodded, keeping his eyes peeled. "Very well." Nagato and Itachi's eyes snapped to the side quickly, looking at the mirror to their left. "Impressive, you were able to track me?"

"Barely," Itachi admitted. "I'm sure Nagato-san was able to though, right?"

"Of course," the redhead replied with a smirk. "That's a very fast jutsu you have. Very few could be able to tell how fast you move without a dojutsu."

"Release the jutsu," Zabuza ordered. Haku nodded then let the mirrors melt around Itachi and Nagato. The masked boy shot out of the mirror and landed next to Zabuza. "Do we have a deal?"

"I don't see why Jiraiya or Lady Tsunade would object," Nagato replied. "Do you have a hideout or camp already set up in these ruins?"

"There's an old cave that the Uzumaki Clan used," Zabuza answered. "That's where Haku and I hide out mostly. We've been here for awhile, and I'm sure that with enough time and manpower that we could make this entire area a campsite." Nagato nodded with agreement then turned to Itachi and Obito.

"Looks like we're heading back home again." The two Uchiha nodded in approval. Nagato turned to Zabuza, "Do you have any other allies with you?" Zabuza pointed to the dead Demon Bros. "Right…sorry about that."

"No skin off my bones, just two less mouths to feed."

"Yeah, you're a chipper guy to be around," Obito murmured. "So we're heading back now?"

"Let's go," Nagato barked. The five rogue shinobi jumped off into the forest, leaving the ruins of Uzushiogakure behind.

* * *

Yahiko and Guy's teams had been walking for nearly four hours, the former's team severely tired. "I thought you said the village wasn't far off Guy-san," Yahiko sighed out angrily.

"Hm? I said it was a few hours away. You can't tell me you're tired already? We need to ignite the flames of youth within your soul!"

'_Oh god, the stories _are_ true…'_

"Come on, let's do some running! That'll light the flames of youth within our spirits!"

"YEAH," Choji shouted with fire in his eyes.

"Yes Guy sensei, onward to the flames of youth," Lee screamed.

"Guys," Shikamaru said calmly. "The village is right up ahead." The three energetic Konoha shinobi looked forward then whined with disappointment.

The four rogues looked ahead with solemn looks on their faces. Right ahead was Konoha, the hell in which Danzo Shimura ruled. They all gave one another a quick glance before walking forward into the belly of the beast.

**

* * *

So yeah, I know this story is probably boring with not a lot of action, and I deeply apologize for that. I'm hoping to change that soon with the Chunin Exams, which will be more heavily focused on now that I've gotten the Land of the Waves 'arc' out of the way and Zabuza and Haku introduced. Again I'm very, very sorry for not having more action fight scenes. Until next time, bye bye.**


	7. Konoha

"Konohagakure," Guy shouted enthusiastically. "Home sweet home! Let's go in and get our friends enrolled." The team of Konoha shinobi shot forward at full speed, leaving the 'mercenaries' behind to stare on with confusion.

They walked forward with Yahiko at point. The other three, despite hiding it, they were rather scared. They always talked big about taking on Konoha and Danzo, but now that they were actually at the village's gates, it was a bit more nerve-racking then they cared to admit.

"Just calm down," Yahiko whispered, turning his head back to the three young ones. "You can't show fear, otherwise we may get more attention than we're already gonna get. Just breathe, and calm down." The three nodded then swallowed a nervous lump down their throats as the stopped in front of the gates.

"Who're these people Guy," one of the guard shinobi questioned.

"These are some friendly mercenaries I met outside of the village," Guy boasted. "They wish to enter the Chunin Exams."

"You know how lord Danzo feels about-,"

"I vow for these mercs," Guy stated, his eyes hardening on the guards. They both looked to each other then back at Guy before stepping aside. The Jonin spun around, smiling with a raised thumb, "No problem at all! Just follow me and we'll get you and your boys signed in and registered!"

"Thank you very much Guy-san," Yahiko said, bowing his head slightly. "I assure you though that you don't have to-,"

"Nonsense, you're guests, and I always tend to guests of Konoha!" Guy moved forward with his students, Yahiko, and his team following behind them.

* * *

Kakashi and Anko walked out of the Hokage's building, having just finished their report on the Kurosuki mission to Danzo. Both of their teams followed out shortly after. Anko spun around, walking backwards with a wide smirk on her face.

"Alright team, who wants to go out and eat after a successful mission?"

"Successful mission," Kakashi repeated, shaking his head with disbelief.

"Yeah, we got our payment, came back with half the weapons and supplies we were supposed to deliver to those Kurosuki goons, and nobody died. Sounds like a successful mission to me."

"What about those rogues you 'forgot' to mention to lord Danzo? They got away and could very well leak information that Konoha forces are in the Land of-,"

"Yeah, yeah, Danzo sure is upset since he has half the world on his side," Anko muttered, waving her hand about dismissively. "Way to tattle to him by the way. Team, not Kakashi who can sod off, team, who wants to go out to eat? My treat."

"Your treat," Zaku repeated.

"I'm there," Dosu exclaimed, raising his arm high in the air.

"Make that two," Zaku added with a smile. Sakura slowly moved her eyes towards Sasuke, trying to not make it obvious to her Uchiha crush. Zaku quickly grabbed the kunoichi's arm and lifted it up, "Sakura's going too."

"Hey," the pink haired kunoichi snapped, prying her arm away.

"Alright, let's head out!" Anko turned then moved down the street. Dosu and Zaku grabbed Sakura by her wrists then dragged her away from her beloved Sasuke.

Kakashi turned to his team, eyes and cold and hard as steel, "Unfortunately for you I'm not as nice of a sensei as she is. We're heading to the training grounds and we're going to practice every skill you three morons are capable of doing until nightfall. Understood?"

"Yes Kakashi sensei," Hinata replied with a firm nod. Kakashi moved his gaze to Shino, who also nodded, and then to the brooding Sasuke who huffed with approval.

"Let's go…" The masked Jonin turned and walked towards the training fields with his three students following closely behind him.

Anko walked down the streets with a grin on her face as she hummed a cheery tune to herself. Dosu and Zaku were behind their sensei, talking about training exercises while Sakura sulked behind them.

'_What if Sasuke-kun was doing something…I could've joined him and been on a date with him! Ugh, if those two IDIOTS didn't have to drag me along I could be with Sasuke-kun right now!'_

"Earth to Sakura," Zaku's voice shouted through his cupped hands. The pink kunoichi jumped a bit and stared at her teammate in front of her with confusion. "This is your best friend Zaku: stop pouting!"

"I'm not pouting," Sakura snapped.

"Yes you are," Zaku's voice echoed.

"I concur," Dosu's voice, also enhanced by cupping his hands, added. Sakura smacked the boys' hands away, glaring angrily at them. "Whoa, someone is an angry kitty."

"DOSU," Sakura shouted, throwing a punch at the hunched boy's head.

"WHOA!" The boy ducked and swerved to the side, narrowly avoiding Sakura's strike. Sakura hated Dosu and Zaku's nickname 'kitty.' She had no idea where they got it from either, but it annoyed her to no end.

"Leave her alone Dosu, she's mad because she wanted to spend time with a jerk who pays no attention to her whatsoever rather than her only two friends in the entire village," Zaku stated. Sakura glared at Zaku, causing him to chuckle and move two steps ahead of Sakura.

"You jerks know I like him," the kunoichi snapped.

"And we know he doesn't even know you exist," Dosu replied. Sakura crossed her arms and huffed with annoyance. "Come on, go for someone else. That Rock Lee guy likes you." Sakura and Zaku both made a noise of distaste, looking at Dosu with utter shock. "Hey, at least he likes you and he realizes when you're around!"

"He probably has her scent down too," Zaku said, jabbing Dosu with his elbow. "He can smell Sakura-chan within a four mile radius." Dosu shook his head and laughed.

"I hate you both," Sakura seethed.

"What about Shino," Dosu continued. "He shows less emotion and attention to anyone more than Sasuke does!" Zaku threw his head back and laughed, slapping his knee once. "Or that lazy ass Shikamaru!" The two started laughing hysterically, unable to walk straight. Sakura sighed then walked down another street, away from her team. Anko stopped and snapped her head to the girl while Dosu and Zaku stopped laughing and looked on with confusion. "Awe man…"

"I'll talk to her," Zaku stated, chasing after the girl. The black haired shinobi ran down the street then walked next to Sakura who was ignoring her. After a few steps of silence, Zaku put his hands in his pockets and looked to the sky. "Wanna hit me?"

"I want you and Dosu to shut up," Sakura snapped.

"We can do that," Zaku replied. "Coming to eat with us?"

"No, I'm going home."

"Oh come on." Zaku moved in front of Sakura, causing her to stop. "After we've been teammates for, how long, you still can't take a joke? Dosu and I are dickheads; you should know that by now."

"I want to go home," Sakura muttered. Zaku shoulders slumped then he stepped aside as Sakura moved past him. Zaku rolled his head and groaned before walking back up to Dosu.

"Well, she hates us again." Dosu groaned and shook his head. "Still wanna go eat?"

"Free meal, duh." Dosu walked forward, catching up to his sensei that started walking as soon as Zaku came running back up. The black haired shinobi sighed then caught up with Dosu.

* * *

Sakura walked through the streets of Konoha, head lowered and mind elsewhere. Right now she just wanted to get home and go to sleep. Maybe she was overreacting, but she didn't care. Her teammates knew how much she liked Sasuke, and they know they crossed the line.

* * *

Naruto was looking at everything around him. Never before had he been around so much of everything happening at once. It was exciting to an extent, but at the same time the Jinchuriki couldn't help but feel that someone was watching him. Maybe that was paranoia? The blonde smiled, enjoying all of the excitement it all as he turned his head. His eyes widened and jaw dropped as he saw a familiar pink haired kunoichi walking in his direction. A blush formed across his face as he quickly turned his head away and stopped gapping, but kept his eyes on the beautiful young girl. She seemed upset, Naruto could tell that much, but even then she was so beautiful.

* * *

Sakura brushed her hair behind her ear then looked up, just as someone popped up in front of her on one knee. Sakura groaned and rolled her eyes immediately seeing who it was.

"Sakura, my darling, my rose," Lee exclaimed loudly and nervously. "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Not now Lee," Sakura said, opening and closing her fists to control herself.

"Then how about tomorrow, or even tonight? I am available whenever you are Sakura!"

"I'm in a bad mood Lee," Sakura seethed, a vein popping out of her forehead. She was about ready to hit him if he said one more word.

"Perhaps I can bring up your spirits, WITH THE POWER OF YO-," Sakura pulled her arm back, but someone suddenly pulled Lee out of striking distance. The kunoichi gasped with shock, seeing an unfamiliar blonde with spiky and messy hair, blue eyes, and a foxy grin.

"Hey buddy, how about a foot race," Naruto asked with a nervous chuckle.

"You do not even know where we are going," Lee stated.

"I mean to the border and back," Naruto replied.

"YES! That is a most worthy challenge!"

"Alright, on your marks, get set, GO!" Lee shot off down the road, dirt flying up behind him while Naruto and the others stood and watched.

"YES GO LEE," Guy shouted. "Huh, wait…" The Jonin turned around, seeing Naruto standing there. "You're not chasing after him…"

"I know," Naruto stated. "Lee may be gone for a few days…"

"No, Lee, LEE WAIT UP!" Guy went chasing after Lee in the same fashion. Shikamaru sighed while Choji only chuckled.

"We just got done running to the gates," Shikamaru stated. "Those two I swear…Choji, go to the barbecue shake and get a table for you and me. I'll show these guys to the registration booth to get visitor's passes."

"You got it," Choji exclaimed before running off.

Sakura watched as Lee and Guy became two tiny dust specs in the distance before turning to the blonde who saved Lee from a beating. "Thank you," Sakura said. Naruto turned his head with wide eyes. "For getting Rock Lee away from me."

"N-no problem," Naruto stuttered. "I could tell you were about to knock his block off…" Sakura cracked a small smirk before looking at Yahiko, Kiba, and Neji.

"So you all are visitors?"

"Y-yeah, we're here for the Chunin Exams," Naruto stated. "Maybe that's where you can knock Lee's block off?" Sakura's smirk widened to a full smile. Naruto's blush widened, praying that the makeup Tsunade put on him wouldn't melt off.

"I'm Sakura," the kunoichi said.

"I-I'm R-Ryu," Naruto replied, almost forgetting his alias.

"Well I was just heading home. It was nice to meet you Ryu. Bye Shikamaru." The lazy genius grunted then waved his hand uncaringly. "Thank you again."

Sakura smiled to Naruto before turning and walking off. Naruto watched her, his heart beating like a drum in his chest. Sakura smiled to herself before daring to look back once again at the blonde. Naruto's heart nearly back flipped as he waved nervously to her. Sakura giggled then waved back before turning back around.

The moment was ruined when Kiba, aka, Fang, pounced on the blonde, cackling like a madman, "HA! Dude, you're blushing so badly!"

"N-no I'm not, shut up Fang!"

"I wouldn't waste your time," Shikamaru stated. Kiba and Naruto turned their heads to the lazy boy with his hands in his pockets. "She's completely in love with Sasuke Uchiha. Some people call him the 'prince of Konoha' because of how Danzo treats him. He's a great shinobi and all for his age, but he acts like people are floor mats and hardly says more than two words to anyone not on his team."

"I hate people like that," Kiba growled. "So arrogant."

"You're preaching to the choir," Shikamaru stated. "Anyway, let's go."

"Right, thank you Shikamaru," Yahiko said. The Genin took the lead with Yahiko following behind him. The orange haired man couldn't help but turn around with a mocking smirk directed towards Naruto. The Jinchuriki scowled angrily as Yahiko turned back around while Neji and Kiba snickered quietly.

* * *

Sakura couldn't stop smiling for some reason. She just met a complete stranger who made her smile in seconds flat. It didn't make sense. Even if he was a cute stranger, with a manly name… Sakura shook her head, trying to get the nonsense filled thoughts out of her mind. The kunoichi got to her front door and sighed. Now she felt bad about ditching her team just because Zaku and Dosu were being jerks. But then again, if she hadn't left she would've never met Ryu. She shrugged then opened the door and walked right on in. Sakura looked around, seeing no one in sight as she took her shoes off and shut the door.

"Sakura," a voice called out.

"Yeah," the kunoichi called back. A man poked his head out of the kitchen to confirm. The man had shoulder length, light brown hair that was swept back, green eyes, stress lines on his face.

"Oh, you're home earlier than I thought you'd be. Doesn't your team usually train or eat after a mission or something?"

"I decided to come home early Uncle Higure." The man nodded with acknowledgment then shot back into the kitchen. Sakura walked into the living room then took a left to the kitchen. She stopped in the doorway, placing her hand over her mouth to keep from exploding with laughter. Her uncle turned around from the stove with a confused look on his face.

"What," he asked.

"Why're you wearing a pink apron," Sakura questioned.

"Because we didn't have any clean aprons…" Sakura rolled her eyes then walked through the kitchen into the laundry room.

"You don't know how to do laundry? Really?"

"Hey, they didn't teach me that, EVER!" Sakura rolled her eyes then started up the washing machine.

"It's not that hard, warm water, soap, throw the laundry in, shut the lid, let it run, and you're done."

"Right, it's THAT easy. Last time I tried to do laundry that damn thing made it halfway into the kitchen somehow."

"That's because all the weight was on one side, so when it spun it moved," Sakura laughed as she shook her head. "What're you cooking anyway? It smells yummy."

"Well at least I can do _something_ right," Higure muttered. "I'm making stir fry vegetables with optional chunks of pork. I didn't know if you were a vegetarian this week or not." Sakura rolled her eyes then started throwing aprons into the washing machine.

"That was just a temporary thing," Sakura exclaimed.

"Yeah, it was on and off again for nearly a full year."

"So you just have vegetables and pork going?"

"I'm making noodles," Higure replied defensively. "Noodles are fine right?" Sakura leaned back to the doorway and nodded with a look of 'duh' on her face. Higure rolled his eyes then stirred the vegetables around on the skillet. "So why did you come home early?"

"Teammates were being jerks," Sakura replied, pouring the soap in before closing the lid.

"What'd they do this time? Call you kitty?"

"NO!" Higure flinched then looked to the laundry room, seeing Sakura clutching the sides of the doorway and breathing heavily. Her uncle ALSO knew that she hated the name, and she was starting to detest the word now too. "Well…" Sakura turned back to the laundry room, still standing in the doorway, "yeah they did call me that once, but that's not why I left." Higure groaned, shoulders slumping over. Sakura stopped then turned her head around with confusion.

"Nope, I'm not going to say anything," Higure told himself. "Just stay quite." Sakura then groaned and her shoulders slumped down. She knew Higure knew _exactly_ what it was about. She decided to not say anything and remain in a silent, yet dignified rage. Sakura started throwing the dirty clothes on the floor into a hamper so that there would be room to walk around. "So, how did the mission go?"

"It went over alright," Sakura stated. "There were three masked people that were spying on us though. They got away though, and no one was really hurt. Except Kakashi's pride that is…" Higure huffed with a smirk on his face. "He's most likely punishing his team right now…"

"Well, just be thankful that you don't have him for a sensei," Higure called out. "So if Zaku and Dosu made you mad, then why aren't you still angry? Did you punch someone on your way here?"

"Almost," Sakura called back with a smile on her face. Higure shifted his eyes over briefly to the laundry room, hearing the smile in Sakura's tone. "I bumped into Lee on the way here."

"And yet you're in a good mood?"

"I met this one guy who save Lee then made him run to the border of the Land of Fire." Higure let out a brief laugh at the thought.

"Who made him do that? Might Guy?"

"Nope, some other boy named Ryu. He had a team with him and they were here for the Chunin Exams."

"What village were they from?" Sakura stopped for a moment to think.

"I don't remember seeing a headband anywhere on them actually…"

"Most likely mercenaries," Higure told her. "Weird how one of them helped Lee. Usually they only look out for number one. At least they have in my experience."

"Well this one was nice," Sakura said, still smiling.

"Sounds like someone has a little thing for mister-young-mercenary," Higure replied with a singsong voice. Sakura grinned and blushed a bit. She was thankful there was a wall between her and her uncle.

"No I don't," the kunoichi replied, still smiling.

"Yeah-huh, sure, that's exactly why you don't sound like a schoolgirl right now."

"Shut up…you're a schoolgirl." Higure rolled his eyes then took the skillet off the stove and put it on pot holders.

"Food is almost ready."

"Alright, let me go change first." Sakura quickly ran out of the kitchen, her uncle watching her with a smile. Maybe she has a chance _not_ to fall for that Sasuke jerk. Sakura ran upstairs and closed the door to her room so she could change.

* * *

Yahiko and his team walked out of the registration booth with Shikamaru, each of the rogues looking at their new IDs curiously. "Alright, well I've got to go hang out with Choji. I hope you enjoy your stay, make sure to not get in trouble…all that stuff…"

"Thank you very much Shikamaru-kun," Yahiko said with a slight bow. "Thank him."

"Thanks," the three students replied with a wave. Yahiko rolled his eyes and groaned. They couldn't even show respect towards their own age group. Shikamaru simply chuckled then walked off with another wave.

"So what now, do we train and then kick some Konoha butt," Naruto shouted. The outburst caused his entire team, Yahiko included, to pounce him, all trying to cover his mouth.

"What part of 'undercover' is hard for you to understand," Yahiko hissed. "We're grabbing a hotel, although you're lucky we don't end up skinned and hung up in the city to be put on display!" Yahiko got up and dusted himself off while Neji and Kiba kept their grip on Naruto's arm, and each one having a hand over the blonde's mouth. The group moved nervously through the streets, watching everyone who walked past them carefully.

In a few moments, the team got to a hotel and booked one large suite with four bedrooms, one and a half bathrooms, and a small living room. Naruto looked around with wide eyes at how simply large the entire area was.

"How do we have money to afford this," Naruto questioned.

"Don't worry about the money. Just try to get as much information during the Chunin Exams as possible," Yahiko sniped. "I've had enough of Konoha's filth around me for one day."

"I'll say, most of the shinobi out there reek of bloodshed," Kiba stated, wrinkling his nose.

"We should all get some rest," Neji suggested. "We're all a bit tense and tired. Some time in an actual bed might do all of us some good." Yahiko and Kiba nodded in approval then went to their rooms. Neji looked over to Naruto who seemed focused on something else. "What's wrong Naruto?"

"Nothing," the blonde replied. Neji examined the boy for a moment in silence. Naruto finally sighed then turned his head to Neji slowly. "You can't tell Kiba or Yahiko okay?" Neji nodded once. "I…I can't stop thinking about that girl."

"You're joking," Neji said with a sarcastic tone. "You were acting like a total idiot while you were around her. It's not surprising that you'd still be thinking about her less than an hour from when you met her."

"B-but she's from Konoha…it would never work out right?"

"That's what heartbreak is," Neji sighed. "Sorry, but this isn't a fairy tale Uzumaki. You should head to sleep. I promise you'll completely forget about it once you wake up." Naruto nodded as Neji walked into his room. The blonde sighed then walked into the last room and shut the door.

* * *

Higure was washing the dishes while Sakura was putting the leftovers away. "So, did I tell you Anko sensei put us in the Chunin Exams?" Higure's head snapped up, then slowly turned to his niece.

"No…you didn't…"

"Oh…" Sakura blinked, unsure of what to say next. "Surprise!" Sakura quickly threw the food in the fridge then bolted for the door.

"Wait," Higure shouted. Sakura froze outside of the doorway as her uncle walked up to her. "Why are you waiting until a week before the exams to tell me?"

"I…didn't want you to worry." Sakura let out a weak, nervous giggle. Higure's eyes narrowed for a moment before he turned and headed back into the kitchen. Sakura's shoulders slumped down as her uncle went back to the dishes. Usually his silence meant that Higure was plotting something, or at least burning with rage inside. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner! I promise I'll be safe! I have Zaku and Dosu with me and you know they won't let anything bad happen." Higure remained silent, causing Sakura to throw her head back with frustration. "Fine, be that way, I'll be in my room." Sakura spun around then stormed to her bedroom and slammed the door.

The kunoichi grumbled as she walked over to her bed and lied down. She glared at empty space before looking to her wall. Her room was painted yellow on three walls and the back wall was a light green which matched her eyes. She had a desk with a lamp on it as well as a few papers and writing utensils. Above her desk, hanging from the wall was a calendar with a giant red circle around tomorrow. Sakura's eyes softened a bit, knowing fully what tomorrow was. She sighed then rolled over on her other side, staring out the window as the sun began to set. She closed her eyes and decided to get some sleep.

* * *

Kakashi stood across from his students, eyes hardened and arms crossed over his chest. The three Genin were dirtied and bruised up a bit. They had been training for the entire second half of the day, and were about ready to collapse. Kakashi shifted his eyes to the sun then back to his students. If he forced Danzo's prized Uchiha any further there could be consequences to pay…

"That's enough," Kakashi stated. "You all can go home now." The masked Jonin turned around, took a few steps then vanished.

Shino let out a sigh then brushed himself off, straightened up and placed his hands in his pockets. Without another word, the silent boy walked off. Hinata scowled angrily, slapping the dirt off her legs angrily.

"This is such bullshit," she shouted. "You're the last of the Uchiha, and I'm the heiress of the Hyuga Clan! He can't just treat us like shit and then expect to just walk away!"

"As long as he's kissing Danzo's ass he can," Sasuke stated.

The young Uchiha turned his head to perhaps the only person in the entire village he could be considered friends with. Hinata had always been short tempered and foul mouthed around those she felt most comfortable with. Others who were on the higher end of the food chain, such as Danzo, or her father, she was always a kind, well behaved girl who gave a charming and deceiving smile. Due to her high status as clan heiress, many people didn't dare to approach her, and those who did usually got eaten alive. Many girls attempted to befriend her due to her close relationship with Sasuke, and all of the girls were jealous of Hinata for the same reason. The only reason Sasuke tolerated Hinata was because she wasn't a shrieking banshee of a girl, and Hinata tolerated Sasuke because of his status as the last of the Uchiha Clan and the fact that Danzo focused on him more than any other Genin.

"Stupid Kakashi," Hinata muttered, crossing her arms in a fuss. "Can't you say anything to Danzo about telling Kakashi to pull that stick out of his rear?"

"Kakashi pushes us to be the best we can be." Sasuke snapped his head to Hinata, eyes hard as steel. "That's why your father allowed you to be trained by _anyone_ besides himself. That's why we have one of the best Jonin in Konoha as our sensei." Hinata scoffed then turned her head away. Granted they were as close as they allowed one another, but sometimes Sasuke's arrogance irritated Hinata.

"Whatever, I'm heading home." Hinata walked off while Sasuke huffed then walked the other way.

* * *

Hours passed and the village of Konoha was all but asleep with only a few people walking through the streets in the dead of night. A few ANBU patrolled the city in the cover of darkness just as a precaution that Danzo ordered. With the Chunin Exams coming up, one couldn't be too careful.

It was nearing morning as light tried desperately to break through the dark clouds hovering over Konoha. Sakura woke up at dusk, got dressed in her ninja attire and snuck out while her uncle still snoozed soundly.

* * *

Naruto was tossing and turning in his bed. He'd been unable to sleep through half of the night. He couldn't stop thinking about the pink haired kunoichi that tormented him every waking hour since he'd seen her. Naruto sat up and growled angrily, ruffling his hair in some vain attempt to get the thoughts out of his mind. He looked outside and noticed that the morning had already begun. Naruto sighed then stood up and started getting dressed. Yahiko would be pissed if he found out, but there was nothing else Naruto could do. He decided to take a walk through the village of Konoha.

In the streets, Naruto tried to be as inconspicuous as possible, but made it a bit harder for himself, constantly looking over his shoulder and looking at all the dead space around him. Luckily he didn't think there was anyone watching him…or at least he hoped not. A loud crashing sound was heard, causing Naruto to shriek with fright and bolt through the nearest alleyway. A cat on the opposite side of the street stood next to a knocked over garbage can and meowed to itself.

Naruto stopped, placing his hands on his knees then panted heavily, unsure of where he was at this point. He looked around for a moment before seeing a sign that hung overhead. The sign read 'Konoha Memorial Cemetery.' Naruto blinked a few times before looking over his shoulder. Just how fare had he ran? The blonde straightened up and started walking away. Still, Naruto couldn't fight the curiosity to look into the cemetery, seeing countless tombstones with all sorts of different names carved in. The young Uzumaki stopped when he saw a small red ball sitting in the middle of the cemetery. Naruto looked around to see if anyone else was around then jumped over the fence. He landed quietly then snuck up quietly, tombstone to tombstone until he got closer to the red ball. As he moved closer he heard a quiet muttering from the ball of a person. Naruto's eyes widened upon seeing a familiar head of pink hair blowing in the breeze.

* * *

Sakura had knelt in front of a pair of tombstones, tears running down her face. The tombstone on the left read 'Satoru Teki' and the one on the right read, 'Saiki Haruno Teki.'

"So the Chunin Exams are coming up," Sakura said. "Uncle Higure freaked out as usual, but there's really nothing he can do about it right?" Sakura wiped the tears from her eyes then sighed. "He's still a great caretaker though. Just a little overprotective sometimes…"

Naruto's eyes softened a bit. He felt as though he should leave out of respect. The boy turned and took one step forward, crunching a few dead leaves under his foot. Naruto flinched then spun around just as Sakura did, the two meeting eye to eye. Sakura blinked with confusion and tilted her head while Naruto waved nervously.

"Ryu? What're you doing here?"

"Um, I-I was just walking through the village and I saw you here. I-I swear I didn't know it was you Sakura-chan." The pink haired kunoichi couldn't help the urge to smile as a faint blush crept across her face.

'_Sakura-_chan_ eh?'_ Sakura stood up, brushing off her legs as she turned to Naruto. "It's alright, I'm just visiting my parents." Naruto lowered his head, feeling ashamed that he interrupted her.

"I'm really sorry, I thought…I didn't know you were visiting your parents…"

"It's alright," Sakura said, placing her hands behind her back. "I visit them at least once every month. There's this one spot outside the village that has very pretty flowers. I sometimes go there and pick some to place on their graves…"

"I'm very sorry. Um…when did they die…?"

"My mother died after child birth," Sakura replied with a small shrug. Naruto noticed the sadness in her eyes as she said this. "And my father was killed before I was born." Naruto lowered his head a bit. "They were both shinobi for the village, but my mom had to retire after she became pregnant. Dad had to downgrade most of his missions to stay closer to home more often."

"I'm surprised Danzo would let him," Naruto murmured. The blonde's widened slightly before he pressed his mouth into a tight line and looked up to a confused Sakura nervously. "Uh, I-I mean I've heard some things about how Danzo runs the village and I didn't think he'd be so kind. Do you know how good of a shinobi your dad was?"

"He was fairly good from what I hear. He was apparently the Kakashi Hatake of his time."

"Wow," Naruto stated with a surprised nod. "What about your mom?"

"She was better than my dad." Naruto smirked as he folded his arms over his chest. "She had perfect chakra control, which I guess I inherited. She was one of the best kunoichi in Konoha during her time." Sakura shook her head, brushing a strand of hair back into place. "I'm sorry, I must be making you feel really awkward."

"No, no you're not…" Sakura crossed her arms and gave a questioning smirk. "Alright, maybe a little bit…" The pink haired girl giggled a bit before moving her hands back behind her back.

'_Okay, why am I opening up to a complete stranger? This is so not me!'_

'_**CHA! It's because he's hot!'**_Sakura mentally groaned. Not inner Sakura, not now at least…

"Um…well I'll leave you alone with your parents," Naruto finally said. The boy turned around to leave.

"W-wait," Sakura called. Naruto froze then turned back around with a confused look on his face. "Um…would you maybe want to get together later? I could show you all the cool spots in the village, and then you could show off to your teammates." Naruto grew a bit nervous and shuffled a bit.

"Y-you mean like a d-d-d-date?"

Sakura placed her hand over her mouth as she giggled, "No. More like me showing a guy, who seems nice, his way around a village he's never been to before."

"Um…o-okay, yeah sure!"

"Alright, around three-ish maybe?"

"That works," Naruto replied with an eager nod.

"See you at three-ish then." Naruto grinned then began to walk away. "Bye Ryu…"

"Bye Sakura-chan," Naruto said as he turned back around to wave. Sakura gave a brief wave back as Ryu jumped over the fence then strode off down the road.

"So…" Sakura spun back around on her heel then knelt down in front of her parents' tombstones. "I suppose I have some explaining to do. That's a boy I met yesterday, his name is Ryu. He saved Rock Lee, that boy I told you is really annoying but likes me, he saved him from a beating yesterday because my teammates were being jerks. You remember Zaku and Dosu right? We visited you once remember? But yeah, Ryu seems really nice doesn't he?" Sakura smiled then knelt back down. She placed her hands together and started giving a little pray for her parents.

After a few moments of silence, Sakura jumped as she felt a firm hand on her shoulder. She looked up, seeing her uncle standing over her, eyes focused on the tombstones. Sakura stared up at him for a moment, expecting him to say something about her being up so early _and_ sneaking out of the house. Instead he just stood there, staring at the tombstones.

Finally, Sakura decided to speak first, "How long have you been there?"

"I just got here," Higure replied. "I did some thinking…about the Chunin Exams." Sakura sighed, sensing a lecture on 'be safe' and 'don't do anything stupid,' and so on in that fashion. "I'm going to help you." The kunoichi whirled her head around, eyes widened with shock.

"You what?"

"Well the Chunin Exams are life threatening even to those who _are_ ready for it. I figure I could train you a bit so then maybe I'd have a niece by the end of it all."

"So wait," Sakura said, standing up and facing her uncle. "You're going to help me train for the Chunin Exams?"

"Well I could whine and complain and give you a lecture, but you'd just do it anyway. Besides, I've been out of the game too long. I go for a test run to make sure everything works correctly."

"Yeah, fighting your thirteen year old niece who's a Genin will surely reignite your flames of youth." Higure smirked then looked down at Sakura who returned a taunting smile.

"Are you two okay with this," Higure asked, pointing between Saiki and Satoru's tombstones. The breeze blew gently through the cemetery. "I'll take that as a yes. Come on Sakura, we start training now."

"Right," Sakura replied with a wide smile and a firm nod. Higure turned and started walking away. Sakura took one step after him then stopped. She turned around and gave a small wave goodbye to her parents' graves before following after her uncle.

**

* * *

So, I was kinda nervous introducing an OC into the story. He's not going to play a huge role just yet, right now he's just a parental figure for Sakura. The next chapter will go over some of the training of Sakura and other characters, and will lead up to the first part of the Chunin Exams.**

**Oh, I also like Hinata a lot better as a semi-psycho lol. And her infatuation with Naruto will be…very interesting to say the least. Muahahahaha!**


	8. Sakura's Busy Day

Sakura was knelt to the ground, fastening the straps on her shoes while her uncle stood across from her, arms crossed. Finally, the pink haired kunoichi stood up, a challenging smile on her face as her eyes met her uncle's matching green eyes. Higure took a small step back, relaxing his stance a bit.

"Alright, first and most important rule of the Chunin Exams: survival," Higure stated. "The Forest of Death has the term 'death' in it for a reason. Many shinobi better than you have died in those woods." Sakura's face drooped, a slightly irritated look on her face.

'_Thanks a lot for the support…'_

"Luckily for you, those shinobi didn't have me teaching them. In the Forest of Death, there are literally hundreds of poisonous plants and animals. The most obvious color for anything poisonous is the color purple, however, there are exceptions. I've set up a meeting with an old medical ninja friend of mine to go over that later. For now, we'll work on your overall abilities. Show me what you've got."

"Alright," Sakura replied, smirking once again. The kunoichi stretched her arm across her body, eyes focused on her uncle who remained completely relaxed. "I hope you haven't gotten soft in your old age uncle."

"I've definitely gotten soft, but that doesn't mean I can't put up a fight. Now attack."

Without another word, Sakura shot forward in a red blur. Higure's eyes narrowed before he stepped back, avoiding Sakura's forward strike. The kunoichi scowled before throwing another punch, which her uncle also dodged. Two more lightning fast strikes were dodged and the third was caught. Higure held Sakura by the wrist, holding her there as firmly as he could. Sakura growled before throwing her foot up at her uncle's head. Without taking his eyes off his niece, Higure jerked his head back, releasing Sakura's wrist. The young kunoichi spun around then landed on her foot, standing across from her uncle in a battle ready position.

"You need to think faster," Higure bluntly stated. "If I were an enemy, I could've killed you in those few seconds I held your wrist. Block out the pain. You can cry after the battle."

Sakura got angry then shot forward. Higure was impressed with her speed, especially for her age. He ducked, swerved, and dodged all of Sakura's strikes. The pink haired kunoichi got angrier, her strikes becoming faster and more vicious. Higure remained calm, his eyes unblinking as he moved nearly two seconds ahead of Sakura. Finally, Sakura had enough then spun around, throwing both of her arms outward to use the striking shadow snake technique Anko taught her. However, the snakes shot out and struck nothing. Higure was gone. Sakura's eyes were wide with confusion as she looked around frantically.

"You can _never_ take your eyes off your opponent," Higure's voice called out. Sakura spun around, seeing her uncle standing a ways away from her. "That's the difference between life and death." Higure sighed then started walking towards his niece. "I have a lot to teach you. The first thing is always keep your eyes on your target. That is the most essential factor in battle."

"Alright, I'll do my best." Higure nodded once then let his arms fall to his sides.

"I'm going to come at you. Your job is to go on the defensive and keep your eyes focused until you see a window of opportunity. I'm not going to hold back…well I'm not going to kill you or put you in any life threatening situations, but other than that, no holding back." Sakura nodded then readied herself.

Higure closed his eyes then sighed before vanishing in the blink of an eye. Sakura gasped with shock before ducking, barely seeing a flicker from the corner of her eye. Higure had thrown his elbow at the side of his niece's head, missing her by only a few strands of hair. Sakura threw an uppercut. Higure pulled his head back and caught her by the wrist. The kunoichi tried to pull away, but to know avail.

"I said to wait for your moment to strike. My eyes will still on you the whole time."

"S-sorry uncle Higure." The older man sighed then released Sakura who took a big step away. It was weird, she'd never seen her uncle like this before. Usually he was just a sarcastic lovable goofball, but now he was so serious.

"Well…judging from what I've seen you're good on speed and reflexes. Now those will undoubtedly save your life in a variety of situations. What you really need is to learn to trust your instincts more, and think faster in a combat situation."

"Yes sir," Sakura replied with a brisk nod. Higure tilted his head a bit with confusion. Now Sakura was perplexed as well.

"What's with the 'sir' remark? I'm still you're uncle aren't I?" Sakura's shoulders drooped and a relieved smile came across her face. Higure smiled back then shifted back a bit. "Alright, ready?"

"Ready," Sakura replied, dropping into a quick defensive stance.

Higure quickly threw a kunai forward. Sakura pulled her head to the side, allowing the blade to pass through her silky smooth hair. She kept her eyes focused on her uncle, actually seeing him shoot forward this time instead of a blur. She watched carefully then threw a punch forward just as her uncle blinked. Higure lowered his head, grabbed her niece by the wrist, moved around behind her, and began choking Sakura with her own arm. The kunoichi gasped in vain for air. She tried wrestling her arm away, but that was a wasted effort too. Finally, she lifted her leg up, stamped down on Higure's toes. Her uncle cried out briefly, and loosened his grip slightly. Sakura then elbowed Higure in the gut with all her might, causing him to fully release her. Higure fell on one knee after being elbowed in the stomach. Sakura jumped in the air, spun around and kicked her uncle across the face, knocking him to the ground. Sakura stared with wide eyes as her uncle slowly propped himself up on his hands. He rubbed his jaw, moaning with pain before looking up at his niece.

"I'd say that qualifies as break time," Higure stated. Sakura's posture slumped over as she rolled her eyes. Higure got up, still rubbing his now aching jaw. "That's one hell of a kick you got by the way."

"Are you okay? I didn't hurt you did I old man?" Sakura punched her uncle's arm playfully, getting an annoyed glare in return.

"You know I hate it when you call me that right?" Sakura giggled as Higure started to walk away. The kunoichi tilted her head then followed her uncle.

"Where are we going," Sakura asked.

"This is a good excuse to see that medic friend of mine."

Sakura moved in front of Higure, stopping him in his tracks. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I just don't want to give you another chance to hit me like that again," Higure replied. Sakura rolled her eyes as Higure continued past her. The kunoichi shook her head and shrugged to herself before following after him.

The two walked through the streets of Konoha as the shops started opening and people started coming out. A few people greeted them as they made their way across the village to Konoha's medical center. A tall building, painted white that had countless windows all around it. The Haruno duo entered into the lobby where a blonde receptionist smiled at them.

"Hello, how may I help you two today?"

"Is Rin here today," Higure asked. The nurse hummed to herself as she flipped through some papers.

"She is. Do you have an appointment with her?" Higure nodded. The receptionist smiled then got up and walked into a back room.

"You set up an appointment with this girl," Sakura questioned.

"No, _you_ set up an appointment with this woman," Higure corrected. Sakura's jaw dropped with shock at her uncle's statement. Higure smirked then turned as the door opened, the blonde receptionist walked out with a brown haired woman with purple marks on her cheeks.

"Long time no see Higure-san," the brunette said.

"Very long," Higure replied. "This is my niece Sakura. I hope you don't mind teaching her some basics."

"Not at all," Rin answered with a smile.

"Alright, Sakura, don't be a bother for Miss Rin got it?"

"Good lord, how old do you think I am? Five?" Higure chuckled embarrassingly before turning and heading for the exit. Sakura took a deep breath before turning back to the new stranger before her and gave a small wave. "Hello, I'm Sakura Haruno."

"It's my pleasure, I'm Rin. Follow me please." Sakura nodded then watched as Rin simply hopped over the desk in a swift movement. Sakura's eyes widened slightly. She didn't expect a grown woman to just hop over things so casually. Sakura shook her head a bit then followed Rin into the hospital.

"So how do you know my uncle," Sakura asked, watching as several nurses and doctors walked by them.

"We met on a mission together. A three man team was sent to infiltrate the Land of Lightning and report back. I was sent as the medical support."

"Who was the other member," Sakura asked.

"My…boyfriend, Kakashi Hatake." Sakura nodded, lowering her eyes to process the information. Kakashi was an obvious choice due to his lightning affinity, as was Rin for her medical prowess. Sakura shook her head, mentally cursing herself.

'_Why do I always have to analyze everything?'_

"Alright, this is the room," Rin said, turning and opening the door to her right. Sakura entered, and was shocked. The room was humid, and full of countless plants of various color and shapes. It was a bit difficult to breath, but Sakura managed. Rin closed the door then walked forward. "This way."

The two walked through the room. Sakura looked around, observing all of the unique and beautiful plants around her. There was a faint humming of the artificial light given off from. There were about three or four other doctors observing the plants, watering them and making sure they had enough light. Rin stopped and turned to a table, which Sakura also faced. The flowers and plants were beautiful and varied in countless bright colors.

"These plants are poisonous," Rin stated. Sakura turned to the medic with shock, then back at the beautiful plants. "If you're not sure a plant is poisonous or not, there's one surefire way to tell." Rin and Sakura leaned forward. The brunette poked the stem of the plant then turned to Sakura. "The stem of a plant is never poisonous, only the leaves or even the vines, but never the stem. If you get a kunai or shuriken and stab the stem a liquid that's clear, but flows slowly, it's poisonous."

"Clear and flows slowly," Sakura told herself with a quiet tone.

"That's right, not only that but you can tell from the taste as well." Sakura shook her head then did a double take on Rin.

"Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of avoiding the plant?" Rin giggled a bit then straightened up.

"Only if you ingest it. If you stab it and you're not sure, take just a little lick of if. If it tastes bitter and makes your tongue tingle then spit it out immediately. Don't leave it in there for more than ten seconds, otherwise there's a high chance it could harm you. Now, if you can't tell immediately and you're nearing the ten second mark, spit it out, wait five minutes. If you're dying to try it again, then it's most likely poisonous."

"How did you all develop these techniques," Sakura asked.

"Watching animals," Rin replied simply. "Animals will taste, but not ingest many poisons, which we adopted. However, some plants give off a certain venom that animals will spit out, but then still try because it tastes good. Those plants are very rare, and there are less than a dozen of them in the Forest of Death. We check the forest monthly to make sure that that specific type of plant doesn't grow out of control otherwise we'll lose more animals that we'd have to replace, and during the time of the exams countless Genin would die. It's just easier to kill the plant then replace animals and deal with angry countries."

"So what does this plant look like?"

"Well…it has a few different forms, and we don't keep it on storage singe it would most likely kill the rest of the plants. But there's one defining characteristic that the plant has. It has leafs that looks like two shuriken stacked on top of each other." Sakura quickly pictured the image then nodded once to Rin.

"Is there any treatment in case if someone ingests them?" Rin cocked an eyebrow up. "My teammates are idiots. I need to make sure in case they eat it."

"Well, there aren't many treatments, but we do have a vaccine that helps neutralize the poison. I could get you some if you need it, but you're teammates surely can't be…" Sakura gave Rin an expectant look. The brunette smiled then turned her body, "This way."

Sakura looked around at the other medics who paid no attention to her while Rin fished through countless antidotes in a refrigerator looking storage device. Sakura took a quick glance, seeing what must've been a hundred vials of various types of liquid. Rin examined each one closely, wanting to make sure she acquired the right one before grabbing a vial with a blue liquid inside of it.

"Here we go," Rin exclaimed, turning around and holding the vial in front of Sakura before shutting the door. "This is a vaccine for the double shuriken leaf. What's cool about it is that it's actually a poison that counteracts the affects of the double shuriken." Sakura hummed curiously as she took the vial to get a closer look. "So you could use it on your kunai or shuriken against opponents to poison them. But if your friends are as dumb as you think I'd save as much of that stuff as possible."

"Right," Sakura chuckled with a nervous smile. "Do you have something else to put this in so I don't spill it or something?" Rin turned, grabbed something off of the desk to her right then held out a simple cork for Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi took the wooden cork then pushed it down firmly to make sure nothing could leak out.

"Now, is there anything else we could go over while we're here? Your uncle only asked me to go over poisons with you, but I think I could teach you a few basic medical techniques." Sakura's face lit up with excitement and a huge grin crossed her face.

"A medical ninja? Me, really?" Rin giggled then escorted Sakura out of the floral room and back into the hallway. "You don't have to do this if you have other duties Miss Rin, really."

"No, no, I want to make sure the next generation of shinobi are well prepared for the future." Sakura gave a curious look to Rin, who simply kept her eyes forward. "It's something not many of our people believe in anymore…"

"What do you mean?" A look of shock crossed Rin's face as she quickly shook her head.

"I-It's nothing, forget I said anything." Rin turned into a room and Sakura followed accordingly. "Alright, this room has many different concoctions that serve various purposes. The thing is most of our medical equipment is activated by a precise amount of chakra flow. Too much will cause an overdose affect and kill the person, and not enough chakra won't make the medicine work. This for example." Rin turned around and lifted a pill in capsule form. "What does this look like?"

"A clotting pill," Sakura asked.

"Yes, but not entirely true. Certain poisons, both used by shinobi, and the types found in plants all have one thing in common: they're carried through the bloodstream. They mostly attach themselves to red blood cells and get carried through the body. This pill can act as a clotting pill, but with the right chakra flow, it only clots specific blood."

"The blood that has the poison attached," Sakura stated.

"Very good. And that's where chakra flow comes in." Rin lifted up her hand. Sakura looked up with a puzzled look on her face when Rin's hand started to glow green with chakra. "What you have to do is send your chakra through a person's bloodstream. The real trick is that your chakra has to flow as effortlessly as the person's blood, otherwise you may end up harming the patient. There wouldn't be any permanent damage, but it would still be very uncomfortable for the individual. The pill does the clotting for you, so you have to sense the clots with your chakra, and then push them all into a single area. Sometimes though I could understand being in a time crunch, so try to leave the areas you send the clots no more than four. Once all the clots are in one area, get a blade and slowly make tiny cuts on the person's skin, enough to draw blood, but not enough to leave a scar. After that, use your chakra again to push the clots out."

"This sounds a lot more serious than 'just the basics' if you ask me…"

Rin laughed a bit, "Don't worry. I hear you have excellent chakra control. It'll take a few practice runs, but you should be fine."

"You don't happen to have a person who was poisoned to practice on do you," Sakura asked jokingly.

"No, but what we're going to work on is you flowing your chakra through a person's bloodstream. You're going to practice on me." Sakura's eyes widened a bit with worry. "Don't worry, I've been through this exercise plenty of times through the medical initiation. They do it to demonstrate the pain you'd put another person through if you failed the exercise. Now, then, let's start with something small." Rin rolled up her sleeve, exposing her arm to Sakura. "Go ahead and place your hand on my arm gently." Sakura nodded then did so. "You know how to funnel your chakra into someone else right?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Good, now just concentrate and ease your chakra into my arm. Don't force it." Sakura's eyes were closed as she focused on letting her chakra flow out. It felt as though something was blocking her chakra flow. The kunoichi scowled a bit and focused harder. "Don't push your chakra. You're trying to hard Sakura. Just relax. You're chakra isn't use to this." Sakura had no idea if it was her words, or Rin's soothing tone, but she felt more calm and relaxed. Sure enough Sakura could feel her charka push through whatever barrier was holding her back and flowing naturally with Rin's blood. "Good job. I'm impressed with how well you're doing. I can hardly sense your chakra."

"So this is all I have to do," Sakura asked, opening one eye to look at Rin.

"Don't get too excited now. What aren't you noticing?" Sakura opened both eyes to fully give Rin a confused look. "How far is your chakra going?" Sakura closed her eyes to concentrate.

"It's…only going to your elbows…" Sakura's eyes both opened with a sudden realization. "A-and my chakra can't go into your hands! But I'm right on your wrists!"

"This is what I mean by basics," Rin stated. "Your chakra is flowing in a straight line. The joints are a bit trickier to deal with. Your chakra has to be able to flow freely. Right now it's flowing where you want it to flow."

"Um…how do I change that?"

"You have to let your chakra go, without letting it go." Sakura tilted her head and blinked repeatedly with confusion. "That's the best way I can describe it. As a metaphor I would say that it's like letting your child wander around in a park, but not letting them out of your sight. Does that make sense?"

"So…I'm keeping control of my chakra…but letting it go at the same time?"

"Right," Rin replied with a nervous smile. She hoped she didn't confuse the poor girl too badly. "Your uncle probably has a better way of teaching it to you. This medical stuff has become like second nature to me."

"Well, the Chunin Exams aren't for awhile now. I could work on it and come around when you're not busy."

"That works," Rin replied. "You can come around my lunch break at one o' clock."

"Are you sure," Sakura asked, feeling guilty over taking the woman's only break during the day.

"Yeah it's fine. I usually get a break until three anyway." Sakura's eyes widened a bit. Rin, noticing the younger girl's shock, simply shrugged. "I'm a valued member of the medical corps. I can basically ask for almost anything I want around here, no arguments and no questions asked."

"That's handy to have." Rin nodded with a sly smile on her face. "So um…I'll take this" Sakura put the vial of poison in a safe compartment in her back pouch. "And I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Sure thing," Rin replied with her usual warm smile. Sakura smiled back then held out her hand awkwardly. Rin giggled at the gesture then shook Sakura's hand.

"Thank you again Miss Rin."

"Anytime sweetie. I'll escort you to the door." Sakura nodded then walked with Rin back towards the front door.

Once Sakura exited the hospital, she turned around and waved to Rin once again before continuing down the road. Rin watched until the girl was out of sight, then went back inside the hospital. Sakura walked through the busy streets of Konoha, wondering what she was going to do with the rest of her day. It had just turned noon, and she still had a date_—'MEETING,'_ she corrected, with Ryu at three. Sakura looked up and thought for a moment. Did she even set up a place to meet him at? The pink haired kunoichi groaned and lowered her head. How was she supposed to go on a date—_'MEETING!'_ with Ryu if she didn't know where to meet him at? Sakura looked forward, seeing a familiar orange haired man browsing a merchant's fruit selection.

'_Wait…isn't that Ryu's sensei? Should I ask him? No, you haven't even said two words to him, plus how creepy would it be if you just asked out of the blue where he and his students were staying at? Yeah, that doesn't sound desperate at all Sakura.'_

'_**Cha! Just do it girl!'**_Sakura groaned, knowing she'd never hear the end of it from her split, crazy personality. The girl thought herself crazy as she walked towards the orange haired man. Mostly because of inner Sakura.

"Um, excuse me," Sakura said. The man snapped his head towards Sakura, causing the latter to flinch a bit with uneasiness. "Um, hi I'm Sakura Haruno, I met you and your students yesterday."

"Oh yes, I remember." The man seemed to ease his body a bit. "Can I help you?"

"Um…well…" Sakura shifted her feet with nervousness and fiddled with her hands. "I was wondering…well I was supposed to meet Ryu later this afternoon and I was wondering if…you could…tell me where you all are staying at?" The man blinked with confusion, making Sakura even more nervous. _'Damn it, I'm such an idiot!'_

"I could just tell Ryu to meet you somewhere if that would be easier," the man finally said.

"YES!" Sakura mentally cursed herself for her nervous outburst then shook her head, "I mean, yes, that would work just fine."

"Very well, where should he meet you at?"

"Um…well uh…how about…HERE!"

"Here?" Sakura once again mentally cursed herself and her complete nervous demeanor. _'I guess it couldn't do any harm…'_ Yahiko pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. Sakura looked with confusion as he wrote something down and handed it to her. "This is the hotel we're staying at. Just wait for him and he'll be out. Does he know what time you're coming?"

"Around three o' clock."

"I'll remind him just to be sure." Sakura gave a respectful bow then lifted her head up.

"Thank you very much sir." Yahiko nodded, and then Sakura was off. _'God that was the most awkward thing ever!'_

'_God that was the most awkward thing ever,'_ Yahiko thought to himself.

After awhile, Sakura got her jitters worked out right as she got home. She reached for the doorknob, but heard someone talking inside. She slowly turned the knob, and peaked in. To her shock, Zaku and Dosu waited inside, sitting on the couch and talking to one another. Sakura poked her entire head inside of the house, seeing her uncle sitting on the chair across from them. All eyes turned to Sakura as she opened the door and walked inside.

"Ah, there she is," Higure exclaimed loudly. "Sakura, we were just talking about you. Man these teammates of yours, they're a riot." Higure put his arm around Sakura then pulled her closely and whispered, "Get them out of my house." Sakura rolled her eyes then looked at her teammates. She didn't need an explanation on why they were here, or why Higure wanted them out. Just the fact it was Zaku and Dosu was enough.

"Come on guys," Sakura called out. The boys hopped off the couch then headed for the door.

"Can you pick up groceries on your way home," Higure asked. Sakura sighed then nodded. "Right, one second." Higure ran off upstairs while Zaku and Dosu waited in the doorway.

"My time with Rin went well by the way, thanks for asking!" Sakura crossed her arms then huffed. Was it too much to ask for crying out loud? Zaku and Dosu turned to one another then shrugged. Higure came back downstairs and handed her a list. "Money," Sakura asked, holding out her hand.

"Right," Higure replied before running back up the stairs.

"Is he getting senile," Zaku asked.

"I heard that," Higure's voice called out from upstairs.

"Age certainly hasn't affected his hearing," Dosu whispered to Zaku.

"I heard that too!" Higure came back downstairs then handed Sakura some money. She put both the list and money in her back pouch. "Alright, try not to get yourself killed with these two."

"I'll try," Sakura replied with an overplayed tone. Higure waved as Sakura and her teammates walked outside, then closed the door behind them.

The trio walked through the streets mostly in silence. Sakura knew that they came to her house to try and patch things up from yesterday. She also knew that the silent treatment would milk the situation a bit more. Zaku and Dosu looked to one another before glancing back at their kunoichi teammate.

"So…how's it goin," Zaku asked.

"Not bad," Sakura replied quietly.

"Cool…"

"What've you been up to today," Dosu asked next.

"I went to visit my parents, then trained with Uncle Higure, and then visited with a medical ninja he's friends with at the hospital."

"Learn anything cool," Zaku inquired.

"Lots of cool stuff," Sakura replied with a smile on her face. "Stuff I could use to save your life, so remember that next time you want to taunt me." Zaku and Dosu gave relieved looks to one another. "So what'd you idiots have in mind to do today?"

"Well, we could train, or just run around town, or go eat somewhere," Zaku suggested.

"I doubt she wants to train idiot. She's been practicing with her uncle and learning medical crap all day!"

"That's why I gave the other two suggestions idiot!" Zaku and Dosu gave each other the stink eye, only to be broke up by Sakura.

"Whoa, idiots, calm down alright? Let's just go eat somewhere since we didn't do that yesterday."

"Sounds good to me," Zaku replied. Dosu nodded in agreement and the trio was off.

The teammates were walking and talking as they headed to their favorite restaurant. Sakura always found it amazing that they could hang out nearly every day, and still have something to talk about for hours.

"Well, well, well, looks like we have the orphan trio," a voice called out. Sakura, Zaku, and Dosu turned around, seeing Hinata with Sasuke, Shino, and Choji standing behind them.

"Oh great," Zaku murmured. "Anyone else lose their appetite?"

"Oh very funny orphan trash," Hinata snapped. "I wouldn't want to ruin your daily diet of garbage and stolen food." Zaku's eyes hardened on the young Hyuga heiress.

"I'm sorry, but isn't your outfit a bit too slutty for a pampered little princess like you," Dosu asked. Hinata looked at her very risqué attire. She wore a black tube top that exposed her flat stomach, and tight pants that were very similar to Sakura's.

"Well, unlike you I'm not afraid to show myself to anyone. Come on mummy man, can't show us your face? Maybe you're so ugly your parents just left you lying in a dumpster!" Sakura quickly grabbed Dosu's arm, holding the hunched over boy back from attacking. Hinata laughed a bit before glaring at the only one she hadn't insulted yet. "That's right, listen to the resident team slut. You know, there's a rumor going around that she gives you both head. Is that true?" Now the situation was reversed as Dosu was now the one who had to hold Sakura back by her arm. It was a losing battle as Dosu was being pulled forward. Zaku took Sakura's other arm and the two together successfully managed to pull her away. "Awe, did I upset the poor baby?"

"You're hardly one to be calling people babies you spoiled little brat," Sakura seethed. "The little Hyuga princess has everything handed to her!"

"Oh, are you going to preach how I haven't endured the hardships of being an orphan," Hinata asked. "Whether or not if I was an orphan I'm from a superior clan, so I could still best you in battle."

"You wanna put that to the test," Sakura questioned. Hinata threw her head back and laughed mockingly before focusing her white eyes on Sakura.

"Even if you weren't outnumbered, you're still out classed. Besides, what would your dear old uncle say if I were to harm his only living relative?" Sakura screamed with rage, nearly breaking free of Zaku and Dosu's grip.

"WHOA NELLY!" Zaku shouted, pulling back with all his might.

"Whoops, touched a nerve did I," Hinata questioned. Sakura growled in anger as she fought to break free of her teammate's grip. "That's no way for a lady to act." Hinata turned her head, "Isn't that right Sasuke-kun?" This seemed to keep Sakura from thrashing around like an animal. A small blush formed across her cheeks as she glanced up at the always brooding Uchiha. "Hey, I found out how to keep the noisy girl to shut her trap. Well, aside from blowing her teammates." Sakura scowled angrily as Hinata simply laughed then walked away. The others followed after her.

"I…really hate her," Sakura fumed.

"Don't we all," Zaku murmured. The trio was silent, both boys finally releasing Sakura once they knew she had control of herself. "Alright, if any of us face her during the Chunin Exams we _have_ to punch her in the face."

"Or even better, we could pants her," Dosu suggested. Sakura cracked a smile at the idea. "Think of how embarrassed the little princess would be then."

"I'm much rather poke out those all seeing eyes of hers," Sakura muttered. "Then she won't be acting so high and mighty…"

"I know this is weird, but why was Choji with them," Zaku asked.

"Probably because we always call him fat," Dosu replied.

"Oh…right…well, who wants to go eat?"

The team made it to the restaurant and ordered their food. After a few moments of awkward silence the Hyuga princess caused, they started talking again, cracking jokes and having a good time.

"So Dosu and I are hiding behind Iruka's desk, and when he comes in he dodges the signature bucked of water on the door, but what he didn't see was the mouse trap we set up that snapped right over his foot!" Dosu's shoulders bounced as he laughed at the memory of when they were at the academy. "Man that was so long ago…"

"Yeah," Dosu agreed. "Didn't you use to hate us back then," the boy asked, pointing a finger at Sakura.

"I couldn't help me," Sakura snapped. "Everyone hated you back then, and I blamed you guys for being the reason I couldn't be on a team with Sasuke-kun."

"Just be glad you weren't on a team with Hinata," Zaku replied before taking a sip of his drink.

"You had a crush on her for awhile didn't you," Dosu asked accusingly.

"What," the black haired boy asked, slamming his cup on the table. "I had no such thing!"

"Yeah you did, for awhile right before and after we graduated. You liked her because she dressed like a slut."

"That and she was curvy," Zaku muttered. "Besides, I didn't know she was a major bitch. I mean if she didn't act so bitchy I'd do her, but eh."

"Ew," Sakura shouted, throwing her fork down. "I'm still trying to eat!"

"Really," Dosu asked. "We've been here for awhile now."

"Yeah, what time is it," Zaku asked. Sakura looked up at the clock hanging on the wall in the restaurant. Her eyes widened with shock before she let out a quick, fearful scream.

"I'm late! Please take care of this guys!" Sakura quickly slid out of the table then rushed out the door. Dosu and Zaku looked at the door then to each other and shrugged.

"Oh god, it's three thirty! I'm so late!" Sakura ran through the streets, sliding around corners and even did a perfect flip over a merchant's cart. She ran halfway across the village before she turned the corner on the street the hotel was at. As she turned the corner, the kunoichi collided with someone. Sakura stumbled back, groaning and holding the side of her head. "Hey watch it you—oh Ryu!" The familiar blonde was rubbing the front of his face with pain, and quickly gave a huge smile once he saw the pink haired kunoichi before him.

"Hey Sakura-chan. Sorry about running into you…ow…"

"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry Ryu, are you okay?" Sakura walked forward and moved the boy's hand away. Surprisingly, aside from a slightly reddened face, nothing seemed wrong with him. "I'm so sorry I'm late! I had lunch with my friends and time slipped away and, and—I'm so sorry Ryu, really I am."

"It's okay Sakura-chan," Ryu replied, now rubbing the back of his head embarrassingly. "I didn't have anything better to do so I just waited."

'_Oh, that's so sweet! Why'd I have to make him wait damn it!'_

"My sensei told me you met him in the market right?"

"Yeah, he seemed nice. Weird, but nice." Ryu nodded in agreement. "So, um, I'll start showing you around." Sakura walked forward with the blonde walking by her side.

Sakura showed Ryu around the market place, and the shopping center of Konoha. She showed him the weapon's store where they had everything ranging from shuriken, tantos, shields, even staffs. Next door was a store where they had a few scrolls of low ranking ninjutsu, but they were still expensive nonetheless and all dealings were monitored by the village and Danzo himself. During the entire tour, Sakura talked about herself and her family, and Ryu told her about his friends and sensei. She showed Ryu the as much of the village as she could. The last place they went to was the top of the Hokage monument.

Ryu gazed with wonder as the sun set in the distance, finding the whole sight to be breath taking. Sakura walked up and sat down on the ledge of the monument, pulling her knees towards her chest, resting her arms over her knees and a smile on her face as she watched the sun. Ryu took a deep breath then walked forward and sat next to Sakura.

"The view sure is pretty," the blonde said awkwardly.

"Yeah," Sakura agreed. "My uncle once brought me up here one day when I was really sad. He told me this is the spot where my parents first kissed…" Ryu smiled then looked at Sakura.

"They chose a pretty romantic spot." Sakura nodded with agreement. "So…your uncle takes care of you?"

"Yep. He's great though. I couldn't ask for anyone better to raise me."

"Was he a shinobi too? Like your mom and dad?" Sakura rolled her eyes then sat her chin on her arms. "Is that a no?"

"You couldn't tell from the way he acts. Most veteran shinobi I know are harsh, serious, and jerks. My uncle is just…always light hearted. It's weird."

"So he's retired," Ryu asked.

"Yep. He retired after I was born apparently. He told me after my mom passed away that he had to take care of me, despite Danzo and the village elders' protests."

"Protests," Ryu repeated.

"He was a very skilled shinobi. His generation apparently was full of prodigies. One in particular was an old friend of his: Minato Namikaze." Ryu's eyes flickered at the name. "He was a ninja famous for his speed and abilities. He had this one technique called the Flying Thunder God. He had the nickname of Konoha's Yellow Flash."

"I've heard of him," Ryu said. Sakura turned her head, hearing the sorrow filled tone in the boy's voice. "He was a great ninja, trained by the traitor Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin. He was loyal to the village and brought great honor to the Land of Fire and Konoha…" Sakura tilted her head a bit, showing worry on her face. Ryu looked over, then quickly smiled. "Uh, I-I know a lot of history is all."

"You sure? If I didn't know any better I'd say you had a personal history with him."

"No way, how could I have a history with a dead hero?" Ryu chuckled nervously, hoping Sakura would turn away. Luckily for him, she did. "So uh…how does your uncle know Minato?"

"They use to be best friends, going all the way back to the academy. The way Uncle Higure talks about Minato's abilities is…weird. He doesn't say it, but I can hear it when he tells me of his adventures, he had the utmost respect for him. Uncle even told me that he believed Minato could've become Hokage if Lord Danzo wasn't…well…I shouldn't say it out loud."

"Really," Ryu asked, a smile growing across his face. "Minato Namikaze couldn't become Hokage?"

"That's what Uncle Higure tells me." Ryu grinned then looked up at the sky, a great sense of pride coming over him. "Oh gosh, it's getting late. I have to be home otherwise my uncle will kill me."

"I'll walk you home," Ryu said. Sakura turned and smiled at the offer. "Come on, it's the least I can do after you showed me around your village."

"Alright, but I have to stop and get groceries first."

"At this time of night?" Sakura's shoulders slumped a bit. There really wasn't any point in getting groceries now. Higure was going to _kill_ her. "Come on, let's head back before it gets too dark, otherwise my sensei'll kill me too." Sakura nodded as Ryu stood up. The blonde extended his hand out to Sakura. The kunoichi grinned then took his hand and was pulled to her feet.

The couple was soon walking through the streets, heading towards Sakura's house. "Hey, what's your favorite type of food," Sakura asked.

"Ramen, why?"

"Just wondering…what're you doing for lunch tomorrow?" Ryu turned his head with a puzzled look on his face. "There's still some parts of the village I haven't shown you. Maybe we could meet up tomorrow morning and I could show you around the rest of the village, and then go for lunch."

"That'd be nice," Ryu replied with a smile. Sakura smiled back then stopped. Ryu stopped too and looked around curiously.

"We're at my house now." Ryu looked up, seeing the young kunoichi's house. It wasn't a bad place in the blonde's opinion. "Well, I would invite you in, but I think that my uncle would be asleep by now." Sakura leaned forward and whispered, "He's kind of old."

"I understand," Ryu replied laughing. "So um…what time tomorrow?"

"Um…nine or ten maybe. Depends on what time you wake up."

"Let's go for ten," Ryu suggested.

"Alright then, see you tomorrow at ten." Sakura walked up to her door and opened it before turning the blonde one last time with a smile on her face. "Goodnight Ryu."

"Goodnight Sakura-chan," Ryu replied. "Thanks again." Sakura nodded then entered her home and closed the door.

"Yeah," a voice exclaimed. Sakura jumped with fight, turning around to see her uncle lying down on the couch reading a book. "You totally _don't_ have a thing for mister-young-mercenary."

"What're you doing awake," Sakura questioned with a furious blush on her face.

"Waiting on my niece to get home with groceries." Higure closed his book then sat up. "Why didn't you invite the young man in?"

"I thought you'd be sleeping!" Higure smirked then looked out the window. His eyes widened with shock as he saw said mercenary walking by. Sakura noticed the look of awe in her uncle's eyes then immediately grew concerned. "What's wrong, you look like you've seen a ghost…" Higure quickly shook his head and blinked repeatedly.

"Nothing, it's nothing. I guess I'm just a bit tired after all." Higure stood up, still having a puzzled look on his face. "What'd you say the boy looked like?"

Sakura was taken back by the questioned, "Um…well he has spiky blonde hair and big round blue eyes." Sakura blushed then glared at her uncle. "And I only noticed his eyes _because_ they were big and round!"

"Uh huh," Higure murmured. Sakura once again looked on in confusion. Usually her uncle would be all over a chance to tease her. Again, the older man shook his head then ran his hand through his hair. "Wow I must be tired. I'm heading to bed. There are leftovers in the refrigerator."

"Don't ask me about my day or anything," Sakura muttered as her uncle walked up the stairs.

The young girl went into the kitchen then got out some vegetables from yesterday, heated them up then sat down and ate them slowly. Sakura chewed slowly as she thought about her uncle's expression when she told him what Ryu looked like. Why would spiky blonde hair and blue eyes freak him out? For god's sake, she had pink hair and that _doesn't_ freak him out? As soon as she finished her dinner, she cleaned her plate then sat it on the drying rack. Sakura walked upstairs, went into her room and dressed into her nighttime clothes: a baggy red shirt with a white circle across the chest, and sweat pants. She made sure that the money her uncle gave her, the list, the poison Rin gave her, and the address Yahiko gave her, were safely put in the drawer of her desk. She walked out of her room and headed for her uncle's bedroom. She opened the door, seeing the older man soundly asleep. As soon as she flicked on the lights, Higure groaned and pulled a pillow over his head.

"I was sleeping," his muffled voice shouted in protest.

"I don't care, I'm going to tell you about my day." Higure groaned again then sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eye. Sakura smiled as sweetly as she could before jumping on her uncle's bed. "Hey, you're always asking me about my day anyway."

"Not while its bedtime. Besides, Rin came by to tell you her lunch hour has been moved to two o' clock and she told me that she went over how to identify poisons, and she's teaching you some medical ninjutsu."

"That was the first half of my day," Sakura stated. "Now for the second half." Higure rolled his head then stared at his niece. "Well, on my way back from the hospital, I ran into Ryu's sensei, a guy named Yahiko. He was nice enough to tell me where they were staying so I could meet Ryu later. Then I came home—,"

"And you found Zaku and Dosu here, took them away, made up, went to eat, showed this Ryu kid around town then came home and woke me up. Goodnight." Sakura jerked forward and grabbed a handful of her uncle's light brown hair. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, okay I'm up!" Sakura released her uncle who winced as he threw his hair back. "You're so mean…"

"Well if you must know, after Zaku and Dosu and I made up we ran into that bitch Hinata who for no reason decides to insult us and call us orphans and trash and whatnot!"

"Sakura, you know you can't get into fights with her unless you want to start a huge issue with Danzo and Hiashi."

"I know, but she doesn't always have to be a bitch does she?" Higure shrugged.

"There's nothing you can do about it. Since Danzo's in charge, the princess gets whatever she wants and if someone like you harms a hair on her head then we're both in trouble." Sakura crossed her arms then huffed. Higure smirked then placed his hand on Sakura's head. "Don't worry, you're still a better woman than she is, and I'll be damned if you won't be a better shinobi than her." Sakura smirked then looked to her uncle.

"Thank you Uncle Higure." The older man smiled back then started ruffling Sakura's hair and laughed about it. Sakura cried out then forced away Higure's hand. "You little!" The young girl dove forward, only for Higure to dodge then tickle her sides. Sakura once again cried out then started laughing uncontrollably. Higure chuckled as his niece squirmed and thrashed around while laughing. "I give up! Uncle, uncle!" Higure snickered then removed his hands from Sakura's sides. The kunoichi took a deep breath then sat up. "You're a jerk."

"You brought this upon yourself," Higure replied. Sakura stuck her tongue out then jumped off of the bed. "Does this mean I can go to sleep now?"

"Yes, you can go to sleep now," Sakura replied.

"Thank you," Higure mockingly said. Sakura turned off the lights then closed the door and headed to her room. Once inside, Sakura simply walked up then flopped down on her bed.

"What a busy day," she told herself before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.

**WOO what a chapter. I'm sorry for not updating sooner, but I've sort of been through a lot these past few weeks. My girlfriend broke up with me last Thursday, and I start school in two weeks anyway. Still, I promise I'll try to update more often before I go to school. For some reason I wanted to make this chapter all about Sakura and well…there ya are lol. The next one will hopefully be bouncing back and forth between characters as usual.**


	9. Enter The Chunin Exams

Jiraiya walked around the hideout with Ranmaru on his back, looking around and smiling as people went by. The tall Sannin had finally got Ranmaru out of his shell, and now the boy acted friendly with everyone, with the exception of the one who killed Raiga: Hana. The boy wasn't too talkative around Konan either, due to the fact she played a huge roll in taking out the swordsmen. Still, Jiraiya had shown nothing but kindness towards the boy. Jiraiya was the only one Ranmaru really felt comfortable talking with, and as such was usually carried on the man's back all day around the hideout.

"Jiraiya-sama," Ranmaru spoke. The white haired man turned his head with a curious look on his face. "I'm hungry…"

"Alright, let's stop and get something to eat kiddo." Ranmaru smiled then nodded as the tall Sannin walked towards the place's makeshift café. Jiraiya's eyes softened a bit as he looked up. _'I wonder how Naruto is doing…?'_

* * *

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Neji and Kiba were groaning as they tried to pry Yahiko's hands away from Naruto's throat. "YOU IDIOT! YOU WERE OUT LATE WITH A GIRL FROM KONOHA? WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU? ANSWER!"

"Maybe if he could breath he'd answer," Neji shouted. Yahiko growled then removed his hands then huffed. Neji and Kiba both sighed with relief while Naruto was panting quickly to catch his breath. _'Why am I always the voice of reason around here…?'_

"Sheesh, why the hell did you freak out that badly sensei," Kiba asked.

"Because we're supposed to be undercover, not getting dates with enemy shinobi!"

"Come on," Naruto coughed, rubbing his now red throat. "Sakura isn't like that. She's nice and she showed me around the village a bit, except those restricted areas…"

"Then what's the point of hanging around her!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head then chuckled. Yahiko rolled his eyes, "Naruto, what do you think is going to happen when she finds out you're a rogue? Or after we leave and you never talk to her again?"

"I dunno," Naruto muttered. "I like her though, and she's fun. Plus her uncle knows about my father, so maybe I can get some information out of-," Yahiko shot forward, staring directly into Naruto's eyes, a finger poking the boy in the chest.

"He knows WHO!"

"My dad," Naruto asked. "Minato Namikaze…that famous Yellow Flash guy…"

"NARUTO! You look exactly like your dad! What do you think will happen if her uncle sees you?" The blonde's brow furrowed a bit then a look of realization came across his face.

"Oh…"

"Yeah, so that's bad for us! No more seeing this girl!"

"That's not fair," Naruto snapped. "Thanks to her I can show you where there are restricted areas you can sneak into so _you_ can get info!" Yahiko opened his mouth, and left it open, unable to think of a reply. "Yeah, take that! Besides, what else am I supposed to do during the next few weeks until the Exams start?"

"I hate you," Yahiko seethed. "Under no circumstances are you to meet her uncle or anyone else who might've known your father! Who's her sensei?"

"I didn't ask," Naruto admitted.

"Avoid her sensei too! Or any other adults she knows!"

"Yeah, that won't seem suspicious," Kiba muttered. "Why don't we just go with him next time? We can make sure that Naruto doesn't do anything stupid and make sure that in nine months there won't be any new babies with a thirteen year old father." Naruto growled at Kiba who simply laughed at his friend.

"That sounds like a fair idea," Neji said. "You know Naruto will just go on this date anyway, even if he has to sneak out. If Kiba and I go at least someone is keeping an eye on him."

"That's why I don't want you two to come," Naruto replied.

"They're going," Yahiko stated. "Because Neji has a point and because I want to see you suffer…" The orange haired shinobi got up then walked to his room, slamming the door behind him.

"Sorry boss, we gotta ruin your quality time," Kiba teased. Naruto rolled his eyes at Kiba's attempt at a joke then walked into his room.

* * *

The day came to an end. Nighttime fell upon the village. The Hokage, Danzo, walked in the tunnels of his underground chambers with three of his most loyal ninjas following behind him. "Have the troops made it to the Land of Waves yet," Danzo asked.

"They should have," Orochimaru replied with a sneer on his face. "It took my team and I less than two days to get there."

"Ha," Guy exclaimed. "Lee and I could get there in less than ONE day!"

"But not with lazy boy and chubby with you," Orochimaru shot back with a small chuckle.

"Enough," Danzo stopped and slammed the tip of his cane into the floor. The other three froze and looked at Danzo. "I want confirmation. You told the troops to send a message back once the arrived correct?"

"Yes lord Danzo." The Hokage and his officers continued forward.

"And how are the Chunin Exams coming along," Danzo asked, turning to Kakashi.

"I assure you that Sasuke Uchiha will be ready for the Exams, and he _will_ pass with flying colors."

"You know, if Sasuke fails I could always give him a curse mark," Orochimaru stated. Danzo's eye moved over to the Sannin, sensing the sinister edge in his tone.

"Your curse marks aren't safe for every single person," Danzo bluntly stated. "That damned mark has killed a few good shinobi, and fine academy students." Orochimaru crossed his arms and shrugged with a cocky grin on his face.

"I have five young students who survived the curse marks. Not only that, but when they each took the Chunin Exams, they were the only ones who passed…and survived." Orochimaru chuckled quietly, getting hardened glares from Guy and Kakashi. "Plus Anko has the curse mark as well."

"Six individuals out of nearly fifty others you brought in and killed," Danzo stated. "If you could find a way to give the curse mark to shinobi with a higher success rate, I'll risk Sasuke for such a procedure."

"I could do some testing…but I need more funding, and more test subjects. Perhaps you have some prisoners of war that I might run some tests on."

"Lord Hokage," Guy spoke, "I do not think it's wise to let this maniac run these tests. Remember when he abducted a hundred of Konoha's own babies, and ran unauthorized tests with the First Hokage's cells?"

"I delivered results," Orochimaru seethed, glaring angrily at Guy.

"Orochimaru is right," Danzo stated. "Do not worry Guy, after that Orochimaru fully knows the punishment for running tests without first running them by me first. Besides, Kakashi can attest to Yamato's strength." Kakashi nodded his head.

"Then why have we not used him in battle," Guy asked. "These rogues that attacked our outposts these past few months, even the Land of Lightning would run with fear if they knew we still had the power of the First Hokage under our belt."

"Yamato's abilities are nothing compared to the First's," Orochimaru casually stated. "They are unique, and formidable, but I'll still need to run more experiments before he can be comparable to the First. I know I'd get results faster if I could just give him a curse mark."

"Find a way to increase success results," Danzo swiftly replied. "Have we gotten word from any of our allies and contestants for the Chunin Exams?"

"Sasori is sending over his Jinchuriki and the boy's team," Orochimaru answered. "Their sensei is a man named Baki. Hanzo is sending a few teams, but he's not sure if they'll be of any worth. Onoki hasn't decided if his village will participate or not. Some of the other villages are entering their teams as well, and a few mercenary teams too."

"Kumogakure," Danzo questioned.

"Same as every year when we host: no. But, an interesting note is that the Mizukage is thinking of sending a few of his Genin over to participate."

"Curious…either they wish to discuss the Land of Waves takeover, or Yagura finally wishes to discuss an alliance."

"Should we plan for the worse," Kakashi asked. Danzo nodded once, then stopped in front of a pair of metal doors then turned around.

"Kakashi, Guy, you two may leave." The two Jonin bowed their heads then turned and walked away. Danzo looked at Orochimaru, then turned and opened the metal doors. The two walked into a room that looked like an operating room. Danzo pulled down his shirt, showing his right arm that looked like wood and was covered with Sharingan eyes.

"Any complications," Orochimaru asked, walking over to a counter.

"None yet," Danzo replied, lying down on the operating table. Orochimaru turned around, wearing a pair of rubber gloves, an operating gown, and having a mask covering his mouth. "What have you been experimenting with lately? I haven't gotten any new reports from you."

"I'm working mainly on the curse marks," Orochimaru replied, lifting up Danzo's arm. "I've been checking in with Yamato in regularly. He's making little progress on his own unfortunately. How is your other eye?"

"It still works," Danzo replied. "Are there any new developments with Yamato that could be applied to me?"

"None that would be of any worth," Orochimaru replied, setting Danzo's arm back down. "I'm going to need a small sample." Danzo nodded as Orochimaru grabbed a scalpel. The Hokage's lip twitched a bit as Orochimaru sliced off a tiny piece of skin. "I never got an answer to my request for more test subjects…"

"I don't have many prisoners to spare. As you know, we've found a way to turn enemies into allies, which is more beneficial to the village than your failed science projects." Orochimaru huffed as he observed the skin sample under a stethoscope. "I can give you a list tomorrow of prisoners you may take. It won't be that many however." Orochimaru pulled his head back, then removed the sample tray and placed it to the side.

"Perhaps…there's another system we could work out." Danzo turned his head, starring at the snake curiously. "The Chunin Exams…many Genin from various villages die. If I were to find a few of these dying Genin before they actually bit the dust and saved them…"

"Just be sure to keep it under wraps," Danzo stated. "The last thing I need is some child seeing your abilities and surviving. If word got out that I allowed one of the Legendary Sannin to enter the Forest of Death during the Chunin Exams…"

"I'm well aware of the risks," Orochimaru replied quietly. "The treatment seems to be working well. Your cells are mixing quite splendidly with the First Hokage's cells, and all the Sharingan seem to be working just fine as well."

"Good," Danzo murmured, sitting up on the table. "When the day comes to invade the Land of Lightning, I will be able to lead my forces on the frontlines…"

"When is that day to come exactly," Orochimaru questioned. "If we can't convince Yagura to join us, then he'll undoubtedly join the Raikage. Both Kumogakure and Kirigakure are both very formidable military powers respectively. Even with our alliances, it will be quite a fight. And that's assuming they don't get the surrounding, smaller nations on their side as well."

"You forget Shisui's ability Orochimaru," Danzo stated. "Once Yagura is within my grasp, I'll make him join us."

"Do not forget that the Mizukage is a Jinchuriki who has control of his tailed beast. I'm not sure if a simple genjutsu, or mind manipulating jutsu will work on him. It hardly works on me."

"Have faith Orochimaru," Danzo whispered. "Before you know it, the world will be engulfed by the Wrath of Fire…and I shall rule over it all…" Orochimaru glanced back at the Hokage then dropped his gloves and mask in a trash bin.

'_Not as long as you may believe old man…'_

* * *

Ranmaru was restless. For some reason he couldn't sleep. The boy tossed and turned, placing his pillow over his face to try and fall asleep. He groaned and stared at the darkness surrounding the room. Ranmaru sat up then looked to the door.

"Master Jiraiya…master Jiraiya are you there?" The boy waited then sighed to himself. What were the chances he'd be waiting anyway? The door creaked a bit, causing Ranmaru's head to snap up. A young lady with long black hair poked her head in.

"Excuse me," she said, "but were you calling for someone?" Ranmaru blushed then looked down.

"Um…I'm sorry, I was calling for master Jiraiya…" The young woman entered the room then lit a lantern to provide light.

"You're that Ranmaru boy right?" The cripple nodded. "I've heard of you. You got here just a day or two before Zabuza-sama and I." Ranmaru looked up with a confused look. He had heard of Zabuza, even before joining these rebels. He had heard it from Raiga. Zabuza was another member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, a group which Raiga hated. The young woman sat down on the side of the bed and smiled. "I'm Haku. It's nice to finally meet you."

"It's um…nice to meet you too," Ranmaru muttered.

"Why were you calling for master Jiraiya?"

"I um…couldn't sleep. I was hoping he could walk me around the place and talk. His stories sometimes put me to sleep."

Haku hummed, "I could walk you around. If you're okay with it that is. I wasn't doing anything besides walking around anyway."

"Um…o-okay, if you're sure Haku-chan." The black haired woman laughed then put Ranmaru's pouch on her back.

"I'm a boy." Ranmaru's eyes popped open and his jaw dropped with disbelief.

Ranmaru was staring at empty space as Haku walked aimlessly through the halls of the underground hideout. Ranmaru glanced at the boy then turned his gaze back forward. "So, you're an ally of the Demon of the Mist?" Haku gave a surprised look back at the boy, but only smiled and looked back forward.

"Yes I am. I'm surprised you knew who he was."

"I use to be Raiga Kurosuki's partner," Ranmaru replied quietly. "He was one of the Seven Swordsmen like Zabuza…"

"I've heard of Raiga," Haku stated with a soft tone. "Zabuza said he was a very skilled shinobi, but didn't have any other kind things to say about him."

"Raiga was the same way," Ranmaru said with a small chuckle. "He hated every member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist."

"That's kind of how Zabuza is. He didn't like many of them, but he respected a few of them for their abilities. He didn't really like a few who had swords that were more special than the person, like Kisame Hoshigaki." Ranmaru's eyes hardened a bit.

"Raiga spoke of him…he hated Kisame the most…"

"Same with Zabuza," Haku nodded. "Zabuza said that Kisame's sword is the only reason Kisame is so powerful. Zabuza said that without that sword, Kisame has very few talents of his own. Apparently, Kisame's sword takes an opponent's chakra and gives it to him to increase his own power. That's why Kisame has so much chakra, and is so strong."

"Did he feel that way about Raiga too," Ranmaru asked. Haku turned his head with a curious look on his face. "Raiga's swords produced, controlled, and even summoned lightning. Raiga's main source of power came from his swords too."

"No, I'm…not sure actually. When he spoke of Raiga it didn't sound like he hated him as much as Kisame. When Zabuza spoke of Kisame it was nothing besides anger and hatred in his tone. I may have to ask him about that next time." Ranmaru smiled then looked over his shoulder at Haku. He could feel a bond with the girly-boy, and felt safe around him, just like with Jiraiya.

"So what is Zabuza doing for the rebels exactly," Ranmaru asked.

"He's taking inventory of their weapons," Haku answered while laughing. "I swear, he's crazy about weapons. That's what he wanted to look at first was how many weapons they had. He sometimes scares me with his weapon fetish." Ranmaru started laughing at the choice of words. Haku smiled then joined Ranmaru and started laughing too.

Haku continued walking around the base for nearly an hour, both he and Ranmaru talking to each other until the latter finally drifted off to sleep. Haku made his way back to Ranmaru's room and set the boy down in bed, tucked him in, then exited quietly. Outside of the boy's room, Zabuza waited with his arms crossed.

"Yes Zabuza-sama," Haku asked.

"These guys need a lot of supplies," the swordsmen muttered. "Would you be willing to head out with a few others to get some weapons and supplies tomorrow morning?"

"Of course," Haku replied with a nod. "Who will I be going with?" Zabuza held up a piece of paper. Haku walked up and read a list of only three people, him being one of them. The other two were Shizune, Ino, and Tenten. He didn't know any of those three. "How'd they choose this group?"

"According to that Nagato guy, they picked you to get more acquainted with more people in this group. This Shizune girl was assigned because you all need an adult escort, and this Tenten is apparently knows her weapons."

"And this Ino?"

"Apparently she's becoming irritable so they're using this as an excuse to get her outside of the base for awhile." Haku rolled his eyes.

"Great, I get to deal with an angry girl…this should be fun…" Zabuza placed his hand on Haku's shoulder.

"Get some sleep kid. You'll have to wake up early tomorrow morning." Haku bowed his head a bit then walked down the hall, giving one last backwards glance over his shoulder. Zabuza watched the boy for a second before walking the opposite direction.

* * *

Time passed quickly in the village, and before anyone knew it, the day of the Chunin Exams. Yahiko escorted his students to the building where the first part of the Exams would take place. The orange haired shinobi sighed, looking around carefully to make sure they weren't being watched. Yahiko stopped in front of the fence surrounding the building, then turned to Naruto, Neji, and Kiba.

"Alright…this is it." Yahiko knelt down in front of the boys, looking each of them in the eye, except Neji, whose eyes were covered. "Just remember, at this point it doesn't matter if you win or lose," Yahiko whispered. "We've got a lot of info about the layout of the village already. Still, try to get as far as you can. You could learn a lot from the Exams alone."

"So you want us to do our best so that we can improve ourselves," Naruto questioned. "Did you hit your head Yahiko?"

"No…I just figured if you grow with the Chunin Exams, then maybe you could be more tolerable." Yahiko cracked a smirk then ruffled Naruto's hair.

"Go knock em dead kids." Yahiko walked down towards the street, the three boys turning to watch him leave.

"Alright, who's ready to flunk a test," Kiba asked with false enthusiasm. Naruto whirled his head around, eyes nearly bulging out of his head.

"Wait, like a written test!"

"That's what the first exam is," Neji replied calmly. "Come on, we'll worry about how you two can cheat off me later." The young Hyuga walked forward with his two spiky haired comrades following behind him.

As they entered the room where they were meant to take the test, Naruto and Kiba were shocked to see how many other shinobi there were. Most of them were a few years older and looked more like thugs and murderers rather than Genin. Without fear, Neji walked forward and sat down at the closest table. Naruto and Kiba swiftly followed behind him. Naruto and Kiba couldn't shake the chills they got from the entire classroom glaring at them like they had some sort of longtime grudge. Neji however pretended to remain oblivious, and frankly wasn't frightened by the other Genin in the room. Neji turned his head a bit to the right then elbowed Naruto.

"Hey, your girlfriend is coming this way," Neji whispered. Naruto blushed then looked up, seeing Sakura walking towards them. Naruto's jaw dropped a bit when he noticed Sakura's hair was now only shoulder length. Sakura sat down with Dosu and Zaku across from Naruto and his team.

"Hey guys," Sakura said. Kiba turned to Sakura's team, needing a distraction from the glaring room of Genin.

"Hey Sakura," Kiba replied quickly. "WHOA! What happened to your hair?" Naruto reached behind Neji and smacked Kiba in the back of his head. "OW! What was that for?" Sakura blushed a bit then gently touched her hair.

"My uncle suggested I should cut it for the Chunin Exams," Sakura admitted. "He said long hair is basically a distraction and could get in my way while fighting for my life."

"Yeah, but your uncle's hair is longer than yours now," Zaku exclaimed. "So he doesn't have any right to judge does he?"

"Except he replied he doesn't fight anymore, and I wanted my hair longer like his, but cutting hair is not one of Uncle Higure's strong suits." Sakura and Zaku looked over at Dosu who stared back at them.

"What, it's strange that _I_ know how to cut hair?"

"Just a bit," Zaku bluntly replied. Dosu rolled his eye then looked at Kiba. The young Inuzuka stared back with a blank look on his face.

"You…could probably use a good comb…"

"Seriously, what is it with you and hair," Zaku snapped. "It's weird man!"

"We all have our vices!"

"And I thought yours was covering your face to look like a freaking mummy! I had no idea you were into hair styling!"

Dosu quickly shot his arm across Sakura's face, quickly flicking Zaku's cheek with the back of his hand. Zaku growled then stood up along with Dosu. The two shot their arms over Sakura's head, but were suddenly stopped. Both looked down, seeing that they were now being held in place by the annoyed Sakura.

"Sit," Sakura shouted, pulling down on their arms. The boys were jerked back down into their seats. Sakura pulled their arms towards the other, causing the boys' heads to move together as well. "DOWN!" Sakura placed her hands on the back of each boy's head, then slammed their faces into the table. The kunoichi then folded her arms across her chest as Zaku and Dosu's heads bounced off the table and fell backwards out of their seats. Naruto, Kiba, and Neji all stared with slacked jawed expressions.

Sakura looked up at them then immediately started laughing bashfully, "Sorry about that. It's just that sometimes I have to play referee with those two."

"I know exactly how you feel," Neji replied. Naruto and Kiba snapped their heads at Neji who simply smirked. "It's not an easy job." The two spiky haired boys were ready to pounce on Neji, but the young Hyuga quickly grabbed them by the collars of their shirts then slammed their faces into the table, just like Sakura did. The kunoichi winced a bit as Kiba and Naruto fell backwards out of their seats. "I understand what you have to go through every day."

"Are they okay," Sakura asked, leaning forward to look at them. Zaku and Dosu groaned, slowly getting back up to their seats.

"Give them a few minutes," Neji replied with a cocky smirk on his face.

Across the room, Hinata, Sasuke, and Shino entered the class. They looked around, and no other Genin dared look back at them. Hinata scanned the room, then saw a familiar head of pink hair. A sinister smirk formed across her lips as she walked towards Sakura's table with her teammates following behind her.

"Hey Sakura," Hinata called out. The pink haired kunoichi groaned and slumped forward. Neji's face hardened, immediately recognizing his cousin. Luckily she didn't recognize him, and was only focused on torturing Sakura. "Who's your friend here?"

"His name is Hizashi," Sakura muttered. "Go away Hinata."

"That's a stupid name," Hinata said, looking up at the blind boy. "He can't even see. How the hell is he gonna pass the Chunin Exams?"

"I may be blind, but I don't need to see to tell you're annoying." Sakura smirked, moving her eyes over her shoulder to look at the now ticked off Hinata. Zaku and Dosu snickered quietly, waiting to see what'd happen next.

"So what you have the cliché super hearing because you're blind or something?"

"Cliché, that's a bit of a big word for someone like you isn't it?" Hinata's eyes narrowed on Neji.

"Actually I'm the heiress of the Hyuga Clan you piece of trash. You should try showing me some respect."

"The Hyuga Clan," Neji replied with mock enthusiasm. "Aren't they famous for kissing your Hokage's ass, and in doing so replaced their honor with sheer blood thirst and ruthlessness?"

"Hardly, we're one of the most powerful clans in the world. We kiss up to no one."

"Not the way I heard it," Neji replied with a mocking tone. Hinata scowled then opened her mouth to reply, but stopped herself. The young Hyuga heiress was baffled when she laid eyes on a spiky, blonde haired, blue eyed boy climbing up from the ground. A blush immediately formed across her face as the boy sat in his chair.

"That hurt," Naruto murmured, rubbing his forehead in pain.

"Well if you'd grow up I wouldn't have to play referee between you and Fang." Naruto groaned then looked up at Hinata who was blushing furiously.

"Who's this?"

"This is Hinata Hyuga," Neji replied, throwing his hand out. "She's the heiress to the Hyuga Clan." Naruto's eyes widened with shock. He put two and two together on the one-sided relationship they had.

"Why don't y-you introduce me," Hinata suggested. Sasuke and Shino looked at Hinata then at each other. Hinata never tripped over her words.

"If I tell you his name will you leave," Neji asked.

"Not a chance," Hinata replied, boldly walking around the table and towards the blonde. "With a hunk like this why would I walk away?" Neji and Sakura's faces twisted with disgusted while Naruto simply looked at Hinata awkwardly. "What's your name?"

"I uh…I'm Ryu," Naruto answered.

"Now that's a nice name," Hinata said as she placed a hand on Naruto's chest. "Fierce…strong."

The blonde started to blush with embarrassment before looking towards Sakura. He was expecting her to be angry, disgusted, or (hopefully) jealous. Sakura was neither of these things. Instead, the kunoichi had a hand over her mouth to keep herself from dying with laughter. To her, the sight of the proud, arrogant, bitchy, and stern Hinata Hyuga flirting like a schoolgirl with ANYONE was a once in a lifetime spectacle to behold. Naruto looked back at Hinata, growing increasingly uneasy.

"You know, being the heiress to a powerful clan, I can choose whomever I want to be my spouse." Neji quickly moved his hand over his mouth to keep laughter from escaping. Sakura's face was already red as she looked over at the brunette then up at the flirting Hyuga.

"Uh—I-I'm flattered, really, but I uh…I'm uh…I'm already engaged!" Neji's head snapped around and Sakura's jaw dropped. Naruto immediately regretted his spur-of-the-moment idea. Hinata glared at Naruto, trying to figure out if he was lying or not.

"Really?"

"Yep, I'm betrothed to a girl back home," Naruto lied, trying to keep a straight face.

"And you won't dump her for me? The heiress to the Hyuga Clan, and the HOTTEST girl in all of Konoha?"

"Sorry, but I love my fiancé too much," Naruto replied slowly, trying not to trip over his words. Hinata rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Alright, but just remember. You could have _all_ of this." Hinata turned and walked away with a bewildered Sasuke and Shino following behind her. Naruto heaved forward as he let out a prolonged sigh.

"Engaged huh," Neji replied, unable to fight the smirk that rested on his face. Sakura looked at the blind Genin then up at Naruto.

"I couldn't think of anything else to say," the blonde whispered. "It just sort of…came out."

"So…you're not engaged," Sakura questioned.

"Good god no," Naruto exclaimed. "I just wanted the creeper to get away from me." Sakura giggled as she felt an overwhelming feeling of relief wash over her.

"That was perhaps the funniest thing I have ever seen," Zaku finally said. The boy was watching Hinata's team walking away before turning around. "You blind-guy, completely told her off, and you, Sakura's boyfriend, completely rejected her!" Sakura immediately punched Zaku in the arm. "OW, what was that for?"

"He is _not_ my boyfriend!"

"Uh huh, sure," Dosu murmured.

"It's okay," Neji replied. "We tease Ryu about Sakura being his girlfriend all the time."

"She's not my girlfriend," Naruto snapped, unable to contain the blush on his face.

"Listen up maggots!" All heads snapped towards the front of the room. There was a man with scars all over his face, and cold eyes that seemed to bore through everyone in the room at once. "I am Ibiki and I will be your proctor for the first part of the Chunin Exams! So everyone listen up, I'm only gonna say this once…"

**

* * *

Ugh, sorry for not updating in so long. I just started college last week, and my Naruto related inspiration hasn't been at its highest recently. Sorry if the story seems kinda slow, but at the moment I'm just sort of working on building everyone's relationships more or less.****I'm thinking of skipping the written exams and just jumping forward to the Forest of Death. Feel free to leave your opinions in the form of a review.  
Also I'm open to constructive criticism as well, and any idea that you all may think will improve the story.**


	10. Second Stage

Orochimaru stood outside of the gates to the Forest of Death, leaning against the sign that read 'Forest of Death,' with a booklet in his hands. The pale Sannin had his eyes narrowed as he scanned the contents of the book before he sensed someone landing before him. "You know, you kind of look like Kakashi in that pose." Orochimaru smiled evilly and chuckled as he snapped the book shut, seeing his former student: Anko, standing across from him. "What're you doing here?"

"I'm on specific orders from Danzo-sama. I'm supposed to go into the Forest of Death during the second stage and find a few new…recruits, for my projects." Anko narrowed her eyes on her former sensei. "You're the proctor for said exam aren't you? That must be a big responsibility for you. To think not too long ago you were just that little girl who I took as my student. You remember your initiation don't you?"

"Kill the other two students," Anko replied with an even tone, keeping her eyes dead on her sensei. She didn't even dare to blink while in his presence. "What type of experiments are you testing for?"

"Oh you know, just the basics. New jutsus, ways to enhance one's capabilities, curse marks…" Anko tensed at the last two words. Orochimaru simply chuckled, knowing he struck a nerve with his former student. "Danzo wanted me to tell you that I may be taking a few of the second stage Genin out of the exam to benefit me. That's not a problem is it?" Anko stepped towards her former sensei until she stood deathly close in front of him. Orochimaru simply continued smiling while Anko looked him dead in the eye.

"If you do anything with my students, if you so much as touch a hair on their heads, I'll make sure you pay. I don't care if you're Danzo's personal crony, you hurt Sakura, Zaku, or Dosu I'll find a way to make you suffer. Got it?"

Orochimaru closed his eyes and chuckled with amusement. The Sannin snapped his eyes open, gazing deep into Anko's. The Jonin suddenly fell to her knees, the air around her growing heavy. Anko reached back and placed a hand over her throbbing curse mark. Orochimaru knelt down and stroked Anko's cheek soothingly.

"Dear Anko, it seems you've forgotten my hold over you. You could never hurt me in this lifetime. Although I'd like to see you try, even if you got close to it, my curse mark will make sure that you stay down." Anko scowled, attempting to bite her sensei's hand. Orochimaru quickly pulled his cold hand away, chuckling with amusement before standing up. "Danzo gave me direct orders to oversee the Forest of Death during the second stage. If you do anything to stop the Exams, you'll have to speak with him, not me." Anko drew in a quick breath, feeling the pressure of her curse mark released. The Jonin stood up, glaring daggers at Orochimaru. "Still, your students don't interest me anymore. That Abumi boy had potential at one point, but he lost it, same with Dosu. But…that leaves Sakura Haruno on your team. Perhaps she has potentials I could unlock…" Anko grinned then started laughing. Orochimaru turned with a faint look of curiosity in his eyes. "What's so funny?"

"If I try to stop the second stage or mess with you I'll have to deal with Danzo right? Who do you think you'll have to deal with if you so much as touch Sakura?" Orochimaru's eyes narrowed a bit, his golden eyes glinting. Anko looked directly into her sensei's eyes. "Go ahead and try to mess with her. I _dare_ you." Orochimaru scoffed, a smirk crossing his lips once again.

"You're a cocky little sport aren't you?" The Sannin turned around then started to walk away from Anko. "We'll just see where the Exams go, shall we?" With that, the sinister Sannin vanished from sight. Anko glared at the empty space before turning back around.

* * *

In the Forest of Death, Sakura, Zaku, and Dosu raced through the treetops at full speed. "Man, that test sucked," Zaku exclaimed. "Glad that blonde kid yelled at the proctor and got all of us to pass, otherwise I think I would've failed us."

"That doesn't surprise me," Dosu murmured. Sakura's eyes seemed distant, something her teammates noticed. "What's wrong Sakura?" The pink haired kunoichi blinked then looked over at her comrades.

"It's just…does anyone else find it weird that Anko sensei handed just both a heaven and earth scroll?" And image flashed through everyone's mind of when Anko pulled them aside and gave the trio both a heaven and earth scroll.

"She wanted us to pass," Zaku replied, "big deal right? We get to pass and head to the third stage. I'm not complaining. Besides, it's not the first time Anko sensei let us slip under the radar right?"

"Maybe not, but she knows that if she's caught that the punishment could mean she would be stripped of her status or even killed depending on Danzo's mood," Dosu said. "And Anko wouldn't want us to just slip through the cracks on something this important. I gotta agree with Sakura: something's up."

"Anko sensei said we should wait a couple of days before showing up to avoid suspicion, so we should find a small isolated spot to camp out."

"Are you kidding," Zaku snapped. "We should be jumping from place to place. Screw hiding in one spot. We don't know if any of those other ninjas are tracker ninjas or not. We can't take our chances of being ambushed at night and killed."

"Or worse…for some of us…" Sakura narrowed her eyes on Dosu. The hunched over boy averted his eye, whistling innocently.

"Yeah, ha-ha, I could get raped. I'd like to see somebody try it."

"Hey, I just thought of something! What if we run into Hinata's team? We could totally beat the crap out of them!"

"Yeah," Sakura agreed, slamming her fist into her opposite palm.

"Hey, I'm for that as much as the next guy, but maybe we should wait that out. Three on three aren't exactly fair odds in this case. I'd rather take on those three separately."

"Oh you killjoy," Zaku muttered. The three Genin shot through the treetops, towards the center of the forest.

* * *

Hinata, Sasuke, and Shino were already in a small clearing in the forest, having a camp set up. "I think we should be looking for a scroll first," Sasuke said, glaring up at Hinata.

"Please, we're the most skilled team in the entire forest. Besides, we've got the plan worked out right? As soon as some idiotic goons show up, we'll spring the trap. Shino, have your little scouts found said goons?"

"Not yet," Shino replied. "It would probably help if we moved deeper into the forest. Most of the other teams wanted to get as close to the tower as possible. That way once they get two scrolls they won't have to make such a long trek through the forest."

"Yeah, but if we head deeper into the forest, then we have to dismantle the other trap we set up at the end of camp, and reassemble it wherever we go next. It's just easier to wait for some idiot to come to us."

In the treetops above, three Genin watched the Konoha team. "The fools," one of them whispered.

"Find that trap, and take them out," a second one whispered.

"Found them," Shino whispered. Sasuke stood up, looking into the treetops.

"Bring them out," the Uchiha ordered. "I feel like having a little warm up to get my blood flowing." Shino nodded once. Without a single movement from the Aburame boy, three Genin shot out of the treetops, being thrown to the ground by swarms of bugs. The Genin landed with a heavy thud. Hinata crossed her arms and pouted.

"Man, and I really wanted to do _my_ plan," the Hyuga heiress stated. Sasuke cracked his knuckles as he approached the Genin from Takigakure.

"Get ready," one Genin shouted. The three pulled out different weapons: one a short blade, the other a ball and chain, and the third two curved sickles.

"Can I play too," Hinata asked with an eager smile on her face.

"Sure, just stay out of my way though," Sasuke replied.

"What about you Shino?"

"I'll sit this one out," the boy replied, staring at the Taki Genin.

"I call the two on the right," Hinata shouted, shooting forward. Sasuke huffed then vanished in a blur.

Hinata sprung forward and twirled to the side as the boy with the short blade attempted to strike her. The Hyuga heiress slid across the ground while the boy with the sickles charged. Hinata smirked then stepped back, ducking and weaving under each strike. Hinata finally threw her hand upward, knocking one of the weapons out of the boy's hand. The boy gasped with shock as he looked at Hinata who grinned as she thrusted her palm forward, striking the boy in the center of the chest with a small burst of chakra blowing out of his back. The boy froze for a moment before he coughed up a mouthful of blood. He fell onto his knees, then on his side in a lifeless heap. Hinata smirked as she looked down at the boy, shaking her hand out a bit. The second boy screamed with rage as he swung at Hinata's head. The Hyuga heiress ducked then struck the boy in the hip, dislocating his leg and fracturing the bone. The boy cried out with pain then fell on his back.

Sasuke pulled his head back as the ball weight on the chain flew by, narrowly missing his nose. The Uchiha threw his leg up, catching it on the chain. The other Genin smirked then pulled back on the chain, bringing Sasuke towards him. The Konoha Genin huffed then slammed his hands into the ground to slow himself down. Sasuke then threw his leg forward, connecting his foot with the boy's face. The Taki Genin flew backwards. Sasuke pulled his leg forward, slipping it through the chain before the boy even hit the ground.

"Is that all you've got," Sasuke asked with a bored tone.

The boy growled angrily before twirling the chain above his head. He threw the weight forward, and the ball shattered like glass. Sasuke's eyes widened a bit as sharp arrows of water shot towards him. The young Uchiha quickly made a series of hand signs then exhaled a wave of fire, which evaporated the water arrows. Sasuke stopped his jutsu, then glared angrily at the now surprised boy across from him. The boy then smirked then jumped back, spinning his chain around again.

"Not bad, but let's see you stop this! Water style: Acid Rain!"

The boy threw the second weight high into the air. He clasped his hands together with the chain in the middle, and funneled his chakra towards the weight. The metal ball exploded above Sasuke, raining down hundreds of tiny droplets of water. Sasuke narrowed his eyes then quickly rushed towards the other Genin. The drops of water started pelting the dirt, sizzling and smoking upon impact. Sasuke moved faster, but a few drops hit him regardless. The boy cried out with pain as the acid burned through his clothes and skin, and then screamed with agony as he soon melted away.

The Taki Genin chuckled to himself before spinning his chain around his arms. The boy turned around with a smile, but gasped when he saw Sasuke glaring back at him. The Uchiha struck his opponent before the other could strike. The Genin landed in a puddle of acid, then began screaming and writhing in pain as his own jutsu started to eat away at him. Sasuke put his hands in his pockets and huffed again before walking away, leaving his opponent to die.

Hinata was sitting on the only living enemy, who was now tied up with his hands behind his back. "Bad news champ," Hinata replied, tossing an earth scroll to him. "They got the same scroll as us."

"Whatever," Sasuke replied, throwing the scroll back in the injured boy's face. "Let's just do your stupid idea. Maybe we can find someone who will fall for it."

"Sounds like a plan," Hinata replied, jumping off of the boy. "But what should we do about him?"

"Some wild animal will most likely come along and eat him," Shino said as he knelt down in front of the boy, "once they catch the scent of blood." Shino pulled out a kunai then cut the boy's cheek. The bug boy stood up then turned to his teammates. "Let's go." Hinata and Sasuke nodded and the three were off.

Less than a minute later, the Taki boy could hear the growling of a feral beast in the woods.

* * *

In a valley above the rebel's hideout, Zabuza stood in front of a tree with his arms crossed, watching Haku intently as he cried out and shouted as he swung around two katanas in his hands. Zabuza wore a black tank-top with his sword imbedded in the ground next to him, with Haku's shirt hanging from the handle. The black haired boy was sweating due to hours of practicing, and his hair fell down in strands from the sweat.

"Faster," Zabuza ordered. Haku stepped back, pulling both blades towards his body then struck forward quicker than before. "Good, now finish your opponent."

Haku stepped back two paces, one sword held straight up in front of him, and the other pulled back with the blade pointing forward. Haku charged forward and stabbed forward with one blade. The black haired boy pulled the blade back then swung the second sword sideways, spun around and swung with both swords. Haku then twirled the blades then made an X with them high above his head before slashing them both apart.

"Not bad," Zabuza admitted.

"NOT BAD? HE WAS GREAT!" Haku and Zabuza looked over, seeing someone pulled back into the bushes. There was some whispering and then silence. Zabuza glanced at Haku who chuckled nervously before sighing.

"I'll go deal with it," the boy said, walking towards the bush. During his approach, Haku sheathed his swords on his back before getting to the bush. Haku looked behind the plant, seeing Tenten and Ino squatting behind it, smiling sheepishly up at the boy.

"Hi," Ino replied with a quick wave.

"You two have got to stop this," Haku sighed out.

"Why can't we watch you train," Ino asked. Haku looked over at Tenten, who immediately held her hands up in defense.

"Don't look at me, I'm keeping an eye on her, not you."

"Oh you're so full of it Tenten! You said that nothing turns you on more than a man who knows how to handle weapons!" The brunette blushed and glared at Ino while Haku groaned with frustration.

"Listen, can you two please just leave me alone right now? Zabuza-sama doesn't like people watching or interrupting our training sessions."

"Fine," Ino replied with an exaggerated sigh. The two kunoichi stood up, looking over at Zabuza as they walked off. To their surprise the man didn't seem too horribly upset. Ino was bold enough to dare a wave towards the swordsmen. Zabuza simply nodded in response. The two girls then looked to each other and shrugged before walking out of sight.

"Please forgive that interruption Zabuza-sama," Haku replied as he spun around on his heels and bowed. "It won't happen again…I hope."

"It's fine," Zabuza answered, still looking down the trail the two girls walked down. "I'm surprised you're such a lady's man though Haku. Seeing as how you look like one to begin with…"

"Gee, thanks a lot," Haku replied sarcastically. Zabuza smirked under his mask then tossed Haku his shirt.

"Come on, break time." Haku smiled then put his shirt on as Zabuza pulled his sword out of the ground and placed it on his back.

The two walked through the forest towards a nearby stream. Haku looked up, seeing two birds flying through the trees, one chasing the other. The boy simply smiled as he watched the two animals play. Zabuza looked at his ward then followed his gaze up to the birds. It always amazed Zabuza how Haku managed to find beauty in some of the simplest things. Ever since they joined the rebels, Zabuza decided to be more lenient on Haku. He knew that by joining this group of renegades that it would put the tracker ninja from Kiri off his trail for awhile at least. Plus they had more allies to help them _if_ the tracker ninja ever found them. The two finally arrived at the small stream. Haku quickly knelt down then splashed his face with water. The boy sighed with relief before shaking his head to get the water out of his hair. Zabuza simply walked knee high into the stream. Haku fell backwards, holding himself up by his hands.

"So…does this rogue group actually have a name," Haku asked. Zabuza turned his head around with a curious look in his eyes. "I'm just wondering. I mean I haven't heard an official title yet, and I figured due to your high status some of the leaders in this group have talked to you…"

"I haven't heard," Zabuza replied laughingly. Haku smirked in response as his master turned back around. "You think a name would make us more formidable?"

"It'd be better than: 'that one group of rogues,' wouldn't it?" Zabuza chuckled then shook his head. Haku took in a small breath as he looked up to the sky.

* * *

"OW," Naruto shouted before slapping his neck with an earth scroll. "Stupid bugs!"

"Shut up will ya," Kiba snarled. "We don't know who could be watching us right now! And don't use the scroll as a bug squasher!"

"Please! Between your nose, and his eyes, there's no way anyone could sneak up on us!" Naruto growled then swung the scroll at another bug buzzing around in his face.

"He's right," Neji stated casually. "However we should still be as quiet as possible."

"Alright," Naruto agreed quietly. "So what's the first order of business? Setting up camp right?"

"We should look for other teams first," Neji replied. "If we can find another team quickly enough and move onto the next round then there's no reason to set up a camp we won't use. Once it starts getting later towards the night we'll set up a camp. Kiba, you're the tracker of the team so you'll be on point. Naruto, you'll be taking the middle, and I the rear."

"Alright, let's head out," Kiba shouted before he and the rest of the team shot into the treetops. Kiba landed in a hunched over position, sniffing the air carefully. Naruto and Neji landed on either side of the young Inuzuka. Kiba's eyes scanned the entire area, as if to follow the trail of the scents. "Well…it smells like there are three or four teams nearby. I can hardly tell how strong their chakras are individually. It's all sort of a big blur to my nose."

"Well tell your nose to focus," Naruto snapped. "We don't want to run into someone with a crazy amount of chakra!"

"Says the Jinchuriki of the group," Kiba shot back smugly.

"He can't show his chakra to anyone," Neji sniped. "If he does then our cover is blown, and just about everyone in our group will kill us if we survive. Just pick the weakest scent of chakra and we'll scout them out." Kiba nodded then turned his head to the left, sniffing twice before his eyes snapped open with shock. "What is it?"

"An entire team of Genin was just…wiped out…"

"What," Naruto questioned. "Who did it?"

"I don't know," Kiba replied. "There's no chakra signature of any kind. In fact: there's no scent at all. It's like the team just…disappeared…"

"Maybe it's a technique of theirs," Neji suggested. "There are various types of countermeasures people have developed to outsmart tracker ninja."

"But how're they supposed to figure out someone's tracking them with their nose and not by sensing them with chakra," Kiba asked, his temper flaring a bit.

"I don't know, but regardless I don't like it either way. But I still don't think we should give into crazy superstitions like a ghost took out the Genin or something. Just pick the next team." Kiba sighed then turned his nose in the other direction and began sniffing.

"This way," the young Inuzuka said quietly. Kiba shot forward, followed by a worrying Naruto, and an unfazed Neji.

Deeper in the forest, a figure wearing nothing by a trench coat and mask, with short hair stood before three Genin corpses. In the figure's hand: a heaven scroll. "This should be good enough for now." The man let his hand fall by his side then vanished in the blink of an eye.

* * *

Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku landed in a clearing and looked at the surrounding area. Zaku groaned as he threw his head back and ran his hands through his hair in a rage. "Damn it! There were almost a hundred other people coming to the second stage! How freaking big is this forest!"

"Keep yelling and I think someone will find us," Dosu stated.

"GOOD! I want SOMEONE to find us! Someone to fight with or something to-,"

"Help, someone help me!" The three turned their heads to the sound of the voice. The bushes in said direction began to rustle a bit before Hinata came bursting out. "Help, oh help me he—oh damn it! It's you three!"

"Man, and I was ready to help some pretty woman," Zaku sighed, placing his hands on his hips while shaking his head. "And it turns out that it's just you."

"Oh stop it, you're gonna make me cry."

"I'll be: the ice princess can feel emotions other than pure feral bitchiness," Dosu snapped. Hinata frowned heavily while glaring at Dosu. "Why don't you run along with your other two teammates? I'm sure they'd love to brood while you bitch."

Suddenly, Shino appeared behind Zaku and Sasuke behind Dosu. Zaku ducked under Shino's strike, and then used the air tubes in his hands to launch himself back into the young Aburame. Shino cried out as Zaku slammed into him then smashed him between the boy and the ground. Zaku rolled back off of Shino and into a combat ready stance.

Dosu raised his arm to block Sasuke's kick. Unfortunately it wasn't the arm carrying his sound device. Dosu used his other hand to brace his arm, managing to hold his ground against Sasuke's strike. The young Uchiha placed his foot on the ground then shot back as Dosu swung his left arm. Sasuke slid across the ground and threw a pair of kunai. Dosu raised his arm, deflecting the shuriken off of his device.

"We don't have the scroll you're looking for," Sakura shouted, turning mainly towards Sasuke.

"Worry about yourself!" Sakura turned around to see Hinata right in her face. The pink haired kunoichi yanked her head back as Hinata's palm narrowly missed her face. Sakura swung her leg around, knocking Hinata's arm out of the way. The Hyuga heiress stumbled as Sakura came around then slammed her fist against Hinata's face. The young, blue haired girl cried out then stumbled away, rubbing the corner of her mouth a bit. Hinata looked at her blood that stained the back of her hand then glared up angrily at Sakura. "You're going to regret that bitch!" Hinata's Byakugan flared as she rushed forward.

"Great," Sakura muttered to herself.

The pink haired kunoichi sprung into the air as Hinata struck forward. Sakura smiled deviously as she pulled out a kunai, threw it past Hinata and cut a nearby rope. Hinata looked over with confusion before looking back up, seeing an entire tree falling straight down on her. Hinata snarled then thrusted her palm upward, striking the bottom of the massive log. Chakra quickly spearheaded its way through the wood, splitting it perfectly down the middle. Sakura landed on the inside of one of the halves of the log, running down it as she threw a kunai with a paper bomb at Hinata. The Hyuga heiress saw this with her Byakugan then quickly spun around.

"Rotation!" Hinata's chakra barrier ate away at the bottoms of the logs. The kunai struck the barrier and exploded. While the rotation saved Hinata from any damage, it interrupted her spinning. The chakra quickly faded away as Hinata spun around, facing Sakura as she closed in from the log.

Sakura threw four shuriken forward. Hinata held her stance, but simply moved her upper body back and forth between the throwing stars. Sakura pulled out another kunai, raising her arm up to her chest in preparation. Hinata thrusted her palm forward with a brief cry. Sakura flipped over Hinata, landing behind the Hyuga heiress before striding forward to take a swing at her. Hinata ducked, pivoted around Sakura then thrusted her fingers into Sakura's side. The kunoichi cried out, and was quickly engulfed in a cloud of smoke. Hinata's eyes widened with fury as a log appeared out of the smoke. Suddenly, a kunai with a paper bomb attached struck the wood with a dull 'thunk.' Hinata gasped before the bomb went off.

Sakura slid down the base of a nearby tree. As soon as her feet hit the ground, she looked up at the cloud of smoke. Hinata skidded out of the smoke, eyes focused directly on Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi couldn't help but fight the smirk that formed across her lips. Hinata merely glared at the annoying kunoichi.

Dosu flipped backwards as three kunai flew past his body. Still standing on his hand, Dosu looked up and saw Sasuke flashing in front of him. Dosu brought his lower body around, his feet barely skidding against the ground, before he threw both feet up at the young Uchiha's face. Sasuke pulled his head back. Dosu's feet narrowly missed Sasuke's nose. The young Uchiha grabbed Dosu's feet, spun around, and then hurled the boy across the clearing. Dosu landed on his hands, and quickly rolled forward into a bush. Sasuke walked towards the bush. A quick, thin, snapping noise was heard. Several rounds of kunai flew out of the bush and shot towards Sasuke. The young Uchiha growled as he jumped backwards, flipped back on his hands, sprung into the air, and landed on his feet. Sasuke threw his bangs out of his face, looking forward at the bush Dosu hid in and was shocked to see two more kunai coming at him. Sasuke raised his arms over his face to shield himself. One kunai struck in the boy's arm, and the second in his gut. Sasuke groaned and kneeled over in pain, quickly pulling the kunai out of his gut. He threw the knife to the side and looked up to see Dosu's fist moments before connecting to his face. Sasuke hit the ground face first. Dosu chuckled menacingly and raised his device up to the side of his head, then gently flicked it with his finger. A soft ringing sound moved through the air and into Sasuke's ears.

"One down," Dosu told himself. Sasuke quickly threw the other kunai, formerly stuck in his arm, at Dosu. The hunched over boy quickly raised his arm up and deflected the blade with the device. Dosu scowled as the sound his device emanated was distorted. _'Damn it!'_ Sasuke quickly flipped to his feet, keeping his stance calm. _'Don't tell me he knows hot to disrupt my jutsu? That's just my freaking luck…'_

Zaku ducked under Shino's strike, then threw his fist forward. Shino pulled his head to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow before jabbing his fist towards Zaku's stomach. The young Abumi pulled his stomach back, gasping with a raspy tone. Shino huffed then threw his fist across Zaku's face. The boy stumbled around, before looking at Shino.

"Alright, you're annoying, you know that?" Shino made no response. Zaku sighed then shook his head. "Whatever, screw it."

The boy slammed his hands through the dirt, blasting air through the ground. Zaku quickly pulled his hands out of the ground, grabbed a kunai, and then threw the blade up in the air. Shino watched the blade, but cried out as the ground fell out beneath his feet. Shino hit the bottom of a pit with a grunt. The kunai Zaku threw, sliced through a rope to another log that fell towards the ground. Shino looked up, realizing that the size of the hole was large enough for the log to crush him. The log smashed into the pit, sending dust flying outward. Zaku simply rubbed the tip of his pinkie inside of his ear casually, then flicked the wax off before walking away. The boy stopped then looked back at the log sticking out of the hole in the ground.

"I swear, that is the most sexually suggestive trap in the world…" Suddenly, the log was being eaten by a swarm of black bugs. Zaku rolled his eyes and groaned. Shino soon jumped out of the pit, clothes slightly tattered and dirtied. Zaku and Shino simply looked at one another, the former looking rather casual. "Um…no hard feelings right?" Shino cried out as he threw his arm forward, millions of bugs shooting out of his sleeve. Zaku threw his hands forward, blasting the bugs back before he ran further back.

"They set up traps in this area," Shino shouted.

"We noticed," Hinata snapped, flipping backwards before two shuriken from Sakura threatened to strike her.

"Looks like we were the ones who walked into a trap," Sasuke stated.

"That's right little man," Dosu replied venomously. "And it's only gonna get worse!" The hunched over ninja got ready to charge, by he and Sasuke both were thrown back by a powerful gust of wind.

Zaku and Shino looked over upon hearing the wind, but they both jumped apart when a strange, repetitive clicking noise was heard. A bizarre creature in a black, tattered cloak threw six arms outward, launching four kunai in Shino and Zaku's directly. Zaku used his slicing sound wave to stop the blades, while Shino used his bugs to do the same.

Sakura looked past Hinata, eyes filled with shock and confusion. The Hyuga heiress found no need to turn around before she sprung forward next to Sakura. The two kunoichi looked dead ahead, seeing a wave of sand pulling backwards and into the gourd of a short boy with red hair, along with his two partners: a woman with blonde hair and four pony tails, and a boy wearing all black and face paint.

"Oh great," Sakura muttered, looking over to her side instinctively. Hinata returned the glance and the two quickly sprung away from one another. Hinata got ready to strike, but another wave of sand flying towards her captured her attention. The Hyuga heiress sprung into the air and landed on a tree branch.

"It's rude to interrupt a lady," Hinata snapped. "Especially when she's fighting!" The redheaded boy simply moved his eyes up at Hinata. "Go away and we'll deal with you and your team next little boy!"

"You obviously don't know who you're dealing with," the taller boy in black stated. "Apparently you've never heard of Gaara of the Desert." Sasuke's eyes snapped towards the redhead, while Hinata and Sakura looked in shock at the boy.

"The Land of Wind's Jinchuriki," Hinata questioned. "In the freaking Chunin Exams? AGAINST ME? Could life get any better?" Hinata jumped down and landed on the ground, a devious smirk crossing her lips. "If I defeat a Jinchuriki, just image how much honor and glory that'll bring to my clan."

"Don't you mean: 'how much honor and glory you'll get'," Dosu asked.

"Either or," Hinata replied with a casual shrug. "Defeating a Jinchuriki could give me my own title! Like the Blood Red Beast, or Kakashi the Silver Fang!"

"Yeah, you could be Hinata the bitchy," Zaku shouted.

"Or Hinata the arrogant," Dosu added.

"SHUT UP! Sasuke, Shino, you two back me up. No telling if Gaara's little friends will help or not."

"I do not need their assistance to deal with six insects," Gaara stated in a quiet and cold tone. "Stay out of this Kankuro, Temari."

"You've gotta be kidding me," Kankuro snapped. "That one bitch is obviously a Hyuga, and there's no telling what the others are capable of!"

"Stay out of my way," Gaara repeated, his tone slightly more dangerous. Kankuro scowled then stepped away. "If you wish to fight me I will kill every last one of you."

"Bring it on," Hinata replied with a cocky smirk.

"Whoa, wait, she doesn't speak for us," Zaku shouted.

"Yeah, taking on a Jinchuriki is way down on my to-do—WHOA!" The two boys dove apart as two giant hands of sand threatened to grab them. "Damn it, now we're in this fight too!"

"Deal with it," Sakura shouted. "I want to be the one to take little miss prissy Hyuga down, not some…Jinchuriki…" Sakura turned to her two partners then screamed; "this is a stupid idea!"

"Agreed," Zaku replied before running towards the edge of the clearing. Suddenly, Temari sprung forward, standing between Zaku and freedom. "Oh crap!" The girl swung her fan quicker than Zaku could raise his hands up, throwing the boy back into the center of the clearing. "I take it we're not going anywhere…"

"Then you'll die," Gaara stated, his sand once again moving outward. Zaku rolled onto his hands then shot back as the sand smashed a hole in the ground.

* * *

Anko was knelt down in front of three Genin corpses, inspecting them curiously. "Anko-san," a voice called out. The Jonin turned her head as a squad of ANBU landed around her. "We got your message…is this what we're supposed to inspect?"

"Yeah. These three Genin were killed, but look around the area." The ANBU scanned the surrounding, enclosed area. "They were completely surrounded by trees, which would mean there is little to no chance that a normal Genin team found them. And there's no sign of a struggle. There's no way any team of kids could track these three, find them in this closed off area, and sneak up on them. And look at the corpses: there are no wounds or anything. And I checked the bodies and there's no internal bleeding as well. Whoever killed these kids wasn't a Genin…"

"B-but then who," one ANBU member asked. "Only Genin and a select few picked by the Hokage are allowed to enter the Forest of Death during the Exams." Anko's eyes snapped up as she rose to her feet.

"I think I have a good idea who…" Anko turned around, and quickly gasped once she saw who was standing behind the ANBU. The squad spun around, and all shifted uneasily when they saw Orochimaru behind them: eyes fixated on the three corpses. Anko's look suddenly became hardened, "Did you do this to these children?"

"No I didn't," Orochimaru replied, snapping his eyes up at Anko. "If you recall: my experiments require live subjects. These children are dead, and thus would serve no purpose. I'm just as intrigued as you are as to how these three youths met their untimely demise." Orochimaru walked through the squad of ANBU then knelt down next to one of the corpses: a young girl with panic stricken, lifeless blue eyes and soft, now dirties, brown hair. "It seems as if there's a mouse hiding in our humble little forest. Whoever it is is obviously NOT a Genin." Orochimaru turned to the ANBU behind him. "We're going to need more scouts in the forest."

"But if we were to be spotted by anyone and it got out that there were ANBU in the Forest of Death during the Chunin Exams-,"

"Fine, Anko and I will scout the forest." Orochimaru rose to his feet. "You all take these bodies back to the morgue and inform Danzo of a possible spy in the forest." The ANBU nodded, three of them quickly moving to take the corpses before leaving. Orochimaru turned to Anko, "Shall we?" Orochimaru turned and took a step forward.

"You weren't lying," Anko stated. Orochimaru stopped, staring straight ahead with no expression.

"You're surprised? Even I don't kill children without reason. And even if I were to do so, I'd make sure and leave a giant mess behind."

"I know," Anko barely whispered. "Let's split up…cover more ground." Without a response, Orochimaru vanished. Anko sighed heavily then looked out into the forest. _'Kids…please be safe…'_ Anko ran forward, breaking out into a sprint before jumping into the trees.

* * *

Neji, Naruto, and Kiba stood back to back in a circle with a Genin lying on the ground opposite of them. "Well that was easy," Kiba exclaimed happily.

"What scroll do they have," Neji asked. Naruto walked up to one of the boys then searched him, pulling out an earth scroll.

"Sorry, they got the same one as us," Naruto answered, tossing the scroll back onto the unconscious boy. "Kiba, any chance that Konoha put separate scents on the scrolls?"

"Yeah, because I'm _that_ freaking awesome! I'm so good that I can pick scents off of scrolls," Kiba shouted. "What do you think I am? A freaking dog?"

"Half of one at least." Kiba growled then moved towards Naruto who quickly moved on the other side of Neji, laughing mockingly.

"Guys, shut up," Neji snapped. The two spiky haired teens froze, looking directly at Neji. The young Hyuga snapped his head around. The spiky haired boys followed Neji's gaze to a man standing up on a tree branch, looking down on them. The man wore a black cloak, wearing a hood to disguise his face.

"Who is that guy," Naruto asked.

"He looks a little old to be a Genin," Kiba whispered.

"I heard that," the man replied with a lighthearted tone.

"Remove your hood coward," Neji commanded.

"Hm…okay!" The man lifted his head up and pulled his hood back, revealing an orange, spiral mask with a black hole on the left side and short, spiky black hair. "Hello!"

"Show us your face," Neji seethed.

"No, no, you told Tobi to remove his hood first!"

"Are there any cases of adult sized five year olds in the world," Kiba asked Naruto.

"Hey, that's mean!" The man named Tobi raised his hand up, showing a heaven scroll to the three boys. "I guess I'll just have to keep this scroll all to myself now!"

"A heaven scroll," Naruto and Kiba exclaimed. Neji scowled angrily, clenching his fists.

"Give that to us!"

"Come and take it from Tobi," the man in the orange mask shouted. Tobi laughed as he quickly turned around then shot off through the woods.

"Get him," Naruto shouted, leaping forward.

"That scroll is as good as ours loser," Kiba screamed, chasing after Tobi on all fours.

Tobi turned his head, looking back over his shoulder at a specific blonde, _'Yes…come and get me nine tails…'_

**

* * *

So, did anyone else absolutely love the latest chapter of Naruto? I thought it was cool, even though Konan is probably going to die soon while being cheated out of a chance to have some cool abilities. Guess what the next chapter is gonna be about? Fighting for scrolls. On one side we have an uneasy alliance of six against Gaara, the Jinchuriki of the Sand. On the other side, we have Kiba, Neji, and Naruto chasing after the mysterious Tobi. There will be fights, there will be jutsus, and there will be deceit! Hopefully my college stuff doesn't get in the way of writing the next chapter. There's gonna be a lot of action, so most likely it'll be done soon…sooner than the rest of my chapters at least lol. Read and review please!**


	11. To Each Their Own

"Get back here loser," Kiba shouted as he threw a shuriken forward. The man known as Tobi ducked under it then turned around, still jumping from tree branch to tree branch.

"Missed me, missed me!"

"God damn it this guy's annoying!"

"You're hardly one to talk," Naruto sniped with a smirk.

"Focus," Neji snapped. "He has the scroll we need. If we work together then we can take him down!"

"But he's too fast," Kiba snarled. "We need to catch up with him first."

"The only chance we have to catch up with him is if Naruto uses _that_ chakra," Neji replied, turning to said blonde.

"Wait, you and Yahiko said I'm not supposed to use that type of chakra!"

"Not in battle, but you can use it to increase your speed to catch up with him. Kiba and I would only need about fifteen seconds to catch up with the two of you. Think you can hold him off until then?"

"No problem." Naruto looked ahead and smirked before closing his eyes. The boy concentrated and reached deep within himself before he felt a sudden surge of power. Naruto launched forward like a rocket, leaving a gust of wind as he shot off the tree branch, nearly knocking Kiba and Neji back.

"Damn," Kiba shouted over the wind before laughing triumphantly.

Tobi sprung off another branch before turning around, seeing the two brunettes following him. "Hey, I thought there were three of you guys!" Naruto suddenly appeared in front of Tobi, a sneer on his face and fist cocked back and ready to fire. Tobi turned his head to Naruto, his mask covering whatever expression he wore.

"Surprise," Naruto shouted as he launched his fist forward. In the blink of an eye, Tobi's hand snapped around Naruto's wrist.

Neji, whose Byakugan was active, gasped with shock as he saw something move underneath Tobi's robes.

The masked man pulled forward on Naruto's arm and spun the boy head-over-heels as he slid behind the blonde. Suddenly, a long chain came out of Tobi's robes and was ready to snake around Naruto.

As soon as Neji sat foot on the next tree branch he hurled two kunai forward at the Tobi's chains. The knives struck between two separate holes in the chain and pulled Tobi back into the base of the tree he and Naruto were standing on. Tobi looked up and tugged his chain a bit, but it wasn't moving.

"Hey, no fair!"

Tobi looked forward, seeing Kiba flying towards him. Tobi flipped upward next to Neji's kunai just as Kiba struck. The masked man grabbed the knives and yanked them out of the tree in time to block Naruto's shuriken. Tobi's chain fell limply towards the branch in front of Kiba's face. The spiky haired brunette grabbed the chain and pulled down on it with all his might. Tobi cried out as he was pulled downward, where Kiba waited with a shuriken between his fingers. The masked man flipped over just as Kiba thrusted his arm at him. Tobi landed behind Kiba and then pulled both arms forward, bringing the young Inuzuka to him. Kiba screamed as the chain tightened around him and threw him towards his opponent. Tobi turned and kicked Kiba in the back, sending him smashing back into the base of the tree.

Neji appeared in the air behind Tobi with one kunai in hand. Tobi spun around, lashing his chain with both wrists at Neji. The young Hyuga used his kunai to catch the chain, preventing the boy himself from being bound. Tobi pulled back on the chains, wrestling the blade free from Neji's grasp. Luckily, Neji had enough time to land in front of Tobi. The masked shinobi thrusted one hand holding a kunai forward. Neji ducked under the strike and spun his arm upward, knocking the knife out of Tobi's hands. Neji then thrusted his fist forward, nailing Tobi in the gut. Neji then threw a punch directly at Tobi's face, hitting him right in the mask. Tobi stumbled around a bit, whining loudly as he held his hand over his eyes. Neji rushed forward then thrusted his arm forward as hard as he could, making direct contact with Tobi's chest. The masked man stumbled back before he fell off the branch and plummeted several meters down before slamming into the ground with a thud.

"Good job," Naruto beamed as he landed next to Neji.

"I almost had him," Kiba said as he rose to his feet.

"He's not dead," Neji growled. His two teammates looked at him with shock. The blows that Neji landed were in the exact same form as the Hyuga Clan's fighting methods. The only difference being that Neji used his fists instead of the accurate, two fingered jab. Neji's technique was still a work in progress, but he sent chakra through his final impact on Tobi's chest. If anything, Tobi's heart should be blown to bits. Despite this, Neji still saw chakra flowing through Tobi's body.

Kiba screamed as he threw a kunai with a paper bomb on it next to Tobi's head. The man didn't move as the explosion went off. "Take that sucker!"

"Yeah!" The three Genin screamed with fright and turned around, seeing Tobi standing behind them. "Way to show that guy whose boss fellas!"

"What the hell," Naruto gasped.

"What's with this guy?" Tobi laughed before darting off to his left.

"After him," Neji ordered. The three Genin rushed through the trees, once again chasing after Tobi.

* * *

Hinata stumbled back before taking a stance, and then spun around, sending her chakra outward to tear a wave of sand apart. Gaara stared at Hinata as her rotation defended her from the sand. Sasuke appeared behind Gaara then fired a series of tiny fireballs. Without so much as blinking, a wall of sand rose up and shielded Gaara from the bombardment. Sakura ran up to one of the open sides of Gaara's shield and threw a pair of kunai with paper bombs forward. The sand moved to the kunai and shielded Gaara again.

"Damn it," Sakura cursed to herself.

"We need a better tactic," Zaku said as he and Dosu jumped back from a wave of sand. "Hey, he can't shield himself from sound! Dosu-,"

"You're crazier than a bag full of cats if you think I'm getting close to that guy! His offense and defense are one and the same. It'll be next to impossible for any of us to get in there!"

"Well we need an idea that'll work, and fast!"

Shino threw his arms forward, sending millions of his bugs forward. Gaara huffed and raised his hand up, bringing a wall of sand to block and trap the bugs inside. The Jinchuriki clenched his hand into a fist, crushing everything inside of his sand with tremendous force. Shino remained motionless before he raised his head up, sunlight reflecting off his shades. A wave of sand threatened to crush him before he leaped back.

Zaku rushed forward, keeping his eyes focused on the half-orb around Gaara. The sand spun towards the black haired boy's direction and shot out a series of spikes. Zaku's eyes widened before he launched himself into the air while simultaneously unraveling a scroll. A pair of steel strings with paper bombs attached up and down it with a kunai on the end appeared out of a cloud of smoke. Gaara turned his attention towards Zaku who was still high in the air. Zaku hurled the daggers forward and used his slicing sound wave as he released them to increase their speed drastically. Gaara's eyes narrowed a bit as he commanded the sand to block the strike. A massive explosion went off, engulfing Gaara completely with smoke and fire.

Sand broke through the smoke and went straight towards Zaku. The black haired boy quickly jerked his upper body back, narrowly missing the sand. Gaara watched the boy carefully, and noticed a smirk on his face whenever he spun around. The Jinchuriki turned his head, hearing a loud rushing sound coming towards him. A massive log came swinging in a few feet away. Gaara had no time to protect himself, so instead he jumped in the air, landing on the log. Unfortunately, the trap also separated him from a large amount of his sand. Gaara looked up, seeing Dosu rushing at him with his sleeve pulled back. The Jinchuriki quickly threw his arms up, bringing as much sand to his aid as he could. Dosu shot forward with an extra burst of chakra through his feet and swung. Gaara gasped as he pulled his head back, narrowly avoiding the blow. Dosu sneered and his single eye widened with satisfaction. Gaara's eyes widened as his entire body suddenly went limp.

"Game, set," Dosu said as he raised his hand up to his device. With a flick of his finger, the device on Dosu's arms rang loudly, causing Gaara to clutch his head and scream in agony. "And match…"

Dosu looked up, seeing that the log was about ready to crash into a tree. The Genin quickly dove off and rolled on the ground while the log and Gaara smashed through a tree, twice as large as the one used for the trap. There was a loud snap that echoed through the clearing as the tree fell over on top of the log, easily crushing anything under its weight.

Temari and Kankuro both looked with shock at the sight, trembling slightly at the thought Gaara could've been bested. "No way…" Temari swallowed the lump she found in her throat, her hand shaking violently.

"If he's not dead," the kunoichi began, "or even knocked out…"

"Then he's going to be really pissed," Kankuro finished.

Dosu, Sasuke, and Shino all kept their eyes on the fallen tree while Zaku and Sakura ran up to their partner and Hinata threw her arms in the air. "Damn it! I was supposed to beat him! Not the one eyed mummy!"

"Shut up," Sasuke ordered Hinata. "He's not finished…" Zaku and Sakura stopped halfway to Dosu with shock at Sasuke's words.

Suddenly a stream of sand launched out towards Dosu. The one eyed Genin shot backwards, using chakra to propel him further and faster. The giant tree suddenly was lifted off the ground and dropped to the side. Gaara walked out of the stirred up dust, his face cracked like glass as his cold eyes focused on Dosu.

"Is that a clone," Shino questioned.

"No," Hinata replied with active Byakugan. "It's…some type of sand armor that he makes from using his chakra. But that's definitely the real Gaara."

"Dosu, can't you use your sound-mind-fuck thing," Zaku asked.

"Yeah, stand next to a falling tree and tell me that you could hear something else besides a loud cracking sound," Dosu snapped. "And now because of your plan that Jinchuriki is pissed at me!" Gaara's eyes shifted towards Zaku and Sakura, focusing on the former.

'_So he's the brains of the team…and those traps must've been set up before I arrived. To actually come up with a plan that could've actually hurt me…_' Gaara grunted as he slammed his palms together, "I'll kill you first!"

All six pairs of Konoha eyes were on Gaara as the sand around him began to swirl and stir wildly. Shino readied his bugs, Sasuke tensed up, and Hinata took her clan's signature stance. Sakura and Zaku took a stance while Dosu slowly moved backwards.

Gaara screamed as he threw his arms forward, launching three massive waves of sand forward. Sakura and Zaku started pacing backwards, slowly at first, until they turned and full on sprinted away. Dosu spun and did the same. Hinata smirked and actually rushed towards the sand. Sasuke ran to the side, running up a large, nearby tree. Shino turned and followed the other team as they fled. Hinata landed on the sand then rushed forward.

"Fool," Gaara whispered as he extended his arm and clenched his fist. Hinata jumped to the side just as a small amount of sand popped up, threatening to crush her. Gaara narrowed his eyes with annoyance then threw his other arm forward, crushing his hand into a fist. Once again Hinata dodged and continued forward.

"That idiot," Kankuro muttered. "He needs chakra to use the sand coffin, and that opponent of his has the Byakugan! I said she was a Hyuga at the beginning of this fight! He can't beat her like this!"

Gaara threw one arm forward, clutching his hand into a fist over and over again while Hinata continually dodged and slowly increased her speed. It was all too easy for her to see where the chakra was being concentrated in the sand and dodge. Eventually, Hinata started to close in, causing Gaara to take an uneasy step backwards. The Hyuga heiress screamed with all her might as she thrusted her palm forward. Gaara raised a wall of sand quickly to block the strike. The Jinchuriki cried out as he quickly thrusted his arm forward. Spikes shot out from the wall of sand, causing Hinata to quickly launch herself back. From above, Zaku was falling towards Gaara, spinning around once before opening his palms directly at the Jinchuriki.

"Slicing sound wave!" A wall of sand flew up and shielded Gaara's head, prompting the Jinchuriki to snap his head up. Sakura swung in on a rope tied to a nearby tree branch and grabbed Zaku before Gaara's sand could crush him. "Nice save!"

"Don't ask me to do it again!" Sakura dropped Zaku, allowing the boy to roll across the ground while she swung off into the treetops.

"I had him," Hinata shouted at Zaku.

"No, he had you. I distracted him and saved your sorry behind." Hinata huffed then turned back to Gaara, who was bringing his sand back to him. "So do you have an effective plan oh-queen of the fat-heads?"

"Sacrifice you and run," Hinata hissed angrily. Zaku rolled his eyes then focused back on Gaara. "I'm serious."

Gaara looked around, trying to find where the other Genin disappeared to. He had already learned what happens when he took his eyes off one of them. That wasn't a mistake he was going to repeat again. Gaara felt the ground vibrate through his sand. He looked down, seeing the dirt pushing up a bit with a soft, orange glow. The Jinchuriki's eyes widened and he screamed as he raised his arms up. A second later, a large explosion went off, followed by another, and another, and a fourth. Dosu shot out of the ground behind Zaku, shaking the extra dirt off his head.

"Good one," Zaku said with an impressed tone.

"Yeah, I can't believe we forgot about that trap." Suddenly, an enraged scream came from the smoke and three streams of sand shot out. Hinata ducked, Zaku dove to the side, and Dosu jumped into the air, flipping over once before landing on the ground. "You're joking right?" Zaku hit and rolled over onto his feet in a crouched position.

"I think we're running out of traps to spring," Zaku said with a frightened tone.

"Good, then we can fight fairly," Hinata said with a grin.

"In case if you didn't notice: our traps have been the only things getting close to breaking through his defense," Zaku snapped. "Even your Gentle Fist couldn't break his defense with a solid hit."

"I'll think of something," Hinata replied angrily.

"We don't have much time," Dosu told both of them, pointing to an angrier than ever Gaara. The Jinchuriki's eyes were wide with rage, and pieces of his sand armor started to fall off his body. "I think we really pissed him off now…" Gaara's breathing was heavy, almost feral as he focused his cold eyes on the three targets in front of him.

"DIE!" Gaara threw his arms forward, launching his sand at his opponents.

* * *

Tobi cried out as he pulled his arms and legs forward, giving him extra momentum as Naruto bashed through a tree branch in an attempt to hit him. Tobi continued forward with Kiba and Neji hot on his trail, while Naruto remained unseen on the ground below.

"If we keep this up he'll lead us all the way back to Konoha," Kiba seethed. "We need a plan!"

"His evasion abilities are practically Jonin level," Neji murmured. "And his speed is far beyond ours. It's like trying to pin down a bear with a kunai."

"If Naruto uses that chakra then-,"

"NO! Yahiko, even the Sannin, gave explicit orders that Naruto is not to use _that_ chakra under any circumstances!"

"But if he does, then we can just kill this guy off and nobody will know!"

"The risk is too great," Neji snapped. "I won't allow it!"

"Well we've gotta do something! Otherwise we're just burning time by chasing this guy!" Neji blinked under his headband before a realization came to him.

"That's it. Kiba, stop now!" Neji landed on the last tree branch and stayed still. Kiba stopped on the next one and looked back to his teammate. Naruto, looking up, stopped a few feet from Tobi's position, curious about his teammates' intentions.

"Hey," Tobi snapped, standing a few branches ahead of the two brunettes. "What gives? Are you guys done chasing Tobi?"

"You're too fast for us," Neji called out, his tone sound rather patronizing. "There's no way we'd ever catch up to you, so we'll just go look for a scroll elsewhere."

"Neji," Kiba hissed under his breath.

'_Clever little brat…'_ Tobi whined and slumped down with disappointment. "But I thought we were having fun!"

"Well now the fun is over," Neji replied, turning his back to Tobi. "Come on, let's go."

"No, stay! I won't run anymore! Promise!" Neji smirked then spun around quickly.

"GET HIM NOW!"

Naruto flashed behind Tobi. The masked man turned his head before Naruto's arms were suddenly wrapped around him, keeping Tobi restrained in a bear hug. Kiba and Neji shot forward, ready to assist their comrade. Tobi struggled against Naruto's grasp a bit until Neji closed in on him. Tobi lifted his legs up, kicking Neji's initial strike away, and then used his other foot to boot Neji in the foot. Kiba moved past Neji, pulling his hand back to strike Tobi. The masked man pressed his foot against Kiba's wrist, keeping the strike from ever being dealt. Tobi then hooked his foot behind Kiba's neck, pulled the boy down and forward. Kiba stumbled forward, his head downward before his skull hit Naruto right in his groin. The blonde gasped then groaned with pain, loosening his grip on Tobi. The masked man threw his arms up, breaking free from Naruto's hold. Kiba lifted his head up with confusion. Tobi jabbed Kiba swiftly and lightly in the face. The spiky haired brunette cried out and stumbled around as Tobi backhanded Naruto, causing him to spin around completely. Tobi grabbed both spiky haired boys by the back of their necks then thrusted them together, causing them both to head butt each other. They both cried out and stumbled back further, holding their heads in pain.

"Almost had me, almost had me," Tobi said with a playful tone.

Suddenly, Neji appeared behind Tobi, open palm pulled back and read to finish Tobi. The masked man didn't turn his head as Neji thrusted his palm forward. Much to his shock, Neji passed, literally, through the man. To add to the shock, Neji caught on Tobi's chain. As soon as Neji set foot on the ground, the chain tightened around the boy's neck, preventing air from getting to his lungs. Neji gasped desperately for air, trying to pull the chain away from his throat. Tobi laughed mockingly as he continued to strangle Neji.

Suddenly, a kunai came flying by, narrowly missing Tobi's head. "Hey, that was close ya know," the masked man shouted at Kiba.

Neji's eyes widened, immediately realizing Naruto and Kiba's tactic. He had seen it a hundred times before. Neji used all of his strength to spring up into the air as Naruto grabbed Kiba's kunai and was ready to strike Tobi from behind. Naruto screamed loudly as he struck, but like Neji, passed right through Tobi. Neji looked down at Tobi, snarling angrily as he still held the chain around his neck. Naruto rolled forward next to Kiba, both of them looking at Tobi with shock. Naruto passed through Tobi and Kiba was an eyewitness to it, and they were both equally baffled by it. Neji landed behind Tobi and pulled back on the chains as hard as he could. Tobi stumbled back a bit, yelping with shock as he tried pulling his arms forward.

"Hey, go get your own!" Neji opened his mouth, trying to force words out of his mouth, but lacked the air to do so. Tobi growled as he tried to overpower the stubborn Genin in disguise before he snapped his head forward. Tobi shrieked with terror as he saw a kunai flying towards him. As the blade got to Tobi, it passed harmlessly through him. "Ha, you suck! Tobi rules!" Neji grabbed the kunai with one hand, raised the blade high above his head, and with one swift motion cut through the metal chain. "Uh oh…" Tobi turned, hearing the sound of his chain being broken. Neji shot forward, causing Tobi to flail his arms around wildly. The young Hyuga shot through Tobi, hit the branch and rolled next to his teammates.

"You alright man," Kiba asked worryingly.

"Ha-ha, nice try, but Tobi is just too smart for ya!" Neji smirked then rose to his feet, showing Tobi a heaven scroll. "AH-WHA?" Kiba and Naruto both looked at the scroll with wide eyes and gapping jaws. "No, no, how did you—when did?" Tobi started frantically looking through his robe in search for his missing scroll.

"Whatever technique you possess, allowing people to pass right through you, it only applies to your body, not the physical objects in your possession. I passed right through your entire body, robe and all, but your chain ensnared me. That time when I dove through you I made sure to take your scroll away from you as well." Neji tossed the scroll over his shoulder, allowing Naruto to catch it and store it away safely. Tobi's back was turned to the Genin and he seemed to be frozen, until his shoulders began to shake, followed by a deep, low laughter. The masked man turned around in a slouched position.

"Not bad," Tobi said, his tone slightly darker than before. "Not bad at all Neji Hyuga…" The three Genin gasped with shock as Tobi straightened up, his arms still hanging limply by his sides. "However, I have business with a certain teammate of yours, so I won't be needing you or Kiba Inuzuka."

The black eye hole in Tobi's mask began to radiate an eerie blood red glow. Kiba and Neji groaned quietly then fell limply to the side. Naruto looked to the two brunettes with alarm before looking back towards Tobi. He was surprised to see the man was now towering over him and looking directly down at him. Naruto threw his fist forward, but Tobi caught it and knelt down to eyelevel with the boy. Naruto tried to pry his hand away, but it was futile.

"Let go of me freak!" Tobi caught Naruto's other fist. Suddenly, Naruto felt his strength being drained from him and something compelling him to look the man directly in the face.

"Naruto Uzumaki," a dark, sinister voice coming from Tobi announced. "Son of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki…" Naruto's eyes widened with shock. How did this man know who his parents were? "And Jinchuriki host of the Kyuubi, the nine tailed fox spirit…" Naruto began trembling with fear. It was a horrible nightmare. It had to be. There was no other way that anyone could know this much except the rebels and most likely the Hokage.

"H-how do you know me," Naruto asked, almost afraid to know the answer. Tobi started to chuckle, dark and coldly before his eye burned brightly, engulfing Naruto in a blinding flash of light.

"Wake up," a voice shouted before Naruto was slapped across the face. The blonde sputtered a few mindless words and sat up, shaking his hazy head. "Are you alright," Kiba asked.

"Wh-what happened to that Tobi guy," Naruto questioned with a terrified tone.

"After Neji took his scroll the guy whine and ran off," Kiba answered smugly. "But that was after he casted some type of Genjutsu on you."

"Genjutsu," Naruto repeated, holding the side of his head.

"That's right," Neji replied. "Whatever it was it took us awhile to break it. Still, he's gone and we have both scrolls, so we should head to the tower as quickly as possible."

"Alright," Naruto murmured as he rose to his feet. Kiba and Neji nodded before jumping off into the forest with Naruto following behind them. The Jinchuriki couldn't shake the fear still coursing through his veins. The voice Tobi had, his power, and how the hell did he know everything about Naruto? What's more, Naruto got a good look in that eye hole just before the Genjutsu was broke. _'The Sharingan…'_ Naruto looked over his shoulder then back at Kiba and Neji.

* * *

On the branch the three just stood on, Tobi walked onto the scene, placing his hand against the base of the tree and looking out to where the Genin ran off to. Suddenly, the wood from the branch began to move upward, revealing a strange plant creature with what one could consider to be a man inside. One half was white and the other half was black.

"How'd it go," the creature asked.

"Rather well," Tobi replied in his dark voice. "Did you get the scrolls I asked for?" The creature raised its hand out of the ground, revealing a heaven and earth scroll. "Excellent…" Tobi took the scrolls then hid them safely into his robe. "You've done well Zetsu."

"Thank you master," Zetsu replied before melting back into the tree. Tobi jumped down from the tree branch and onto the ground. He decided to take his sweet time walking back to the tower.

* * *

Hinata ducked under a strike of sand then used her rotation as three more tried to attack simultaneously. Zaku ducked while striding backwards, then back flipped as two streams of sand tried to impale him. Dosu spun to the side, ducked, spun back around, and then jumped back.

Gaara stood as he watched the three Genin evade his strikes, his rage bubbling up. Temari and Kankuro watched with fear, worrying that Gaara might slip and lose control.

High above in the tree tops, Sakura and Sasuke were moving quickly to set off the final trap that Sakura and her team had set up. During the last attack, Sasuke questioned Sakura about any other traps. Luckily, thanks to Zaku's overzealousness, they had set up the mother of all traps.

"Is everything set up," Sasuke asked, his patience wearing thin.

"We just need to cut this last rope and everything will go off automatically," Sakura replied. _'I hope…'_ Sakura and Sasuke stopped on a nearby branch with a special sealed tag pressing down on a rope. "Get ready…" Sakura reached up and quickly tore the tag off the tree.

There was a loud crushing sound heard, causing Dosu and Zaku to snap their heads up. "Oh…crap," Zaku murmured.

"RUN," Dosu shouted as he bolted to the side. Zaku quickly followed and a confused Hinata did the same.

"Oh no you don't," Gaara bellowed as he threw his fist forward.

Suddenly, something caught the Jinchuriki's eye, causing him to avert his sand to the side. Five kunai stuck into the floating sand and five explosions went off shortly afterwards. Another explosion went off behind Gaara, causing the redhead to turn his head around. The trunk of a giant tree was blown wide open, causing the tree itself to fall towards Gaara. The Jinchuriki raised his arms up, bringing a wall of sand up to defend himself. The tree landed against the sand, but the weight of it and the force of the impact caused Gaara's feet to dig into the ground a bit.

'_Now,'_ Sakura thought to herself, throwing a kunai from the trees.

The blade stuck into the ground, nearly four feet behind Gaara. A split second later, a series of explosions erupted at Gaara's feet. The tree hit the ground, splitting the cloud of smoke in half. Gaara himself slid out of one half shortly afterwards, his sand armor cracked in various places over his body. The redhead was burning with murderous rage as he looked around for anything he could kill.

Sasuke and Sakura jumped down from the treetops on opposite sides and sliced through a series of barely visible steel wires. The wires tugged back on the tree that was used to try and kill Gaara. The Jinchuriki looked over with confusion as he heard something being pulled apart. The massive tree was split in half by the wires. Gaara quickly raised his arms and sand to shield himself. The half of the tree swung by and smashed into the sand and pushed Gaara himself with it. The two halves slammed into each other with a thunderous banging sound, throwing dirt up into the air. All was silent as the dust began to settle.

"Okay," Hinata began as she turned to Zaku and Dosu. "What the HELL would you need a trap like that for?"

"Well the tree would fall on someone right, and in case if they were alive, the paper bombs would finish em off," Zaku explained.

"Oh lord, now you got him started…"

"But that wouldn't take out an entire team most likely, since someone would've noticed right? So, that's where splitting the tree in half takes place, so that it can smush the other remaining survivors and BAM they're all dead."

"What about the kunai with the paper bombs at the beginning?"

"Those were just to make sure that nobody moved," Zaku replied with a smug grin. "Pretty impressive huh?"

"The exams haven't even gone over a day yet," Hinata murmured. "How the hell did you get all that setup?"

"Zaku is a busy beaver," Dosu answered, adding a quick eye-roll. The black haired shinobi shrugged with a cocky grin on his face.

"Took care of mister-," A loud, pained roar of rage echoed throughout the woods. The two halves of the tree were thrown apart by two massive arms of sand. Inside, an infuriated Gaara with cracked armor panted heavily, eyes burning with rage and blood visibly running down his face. "Ah crap…"

"N-no way," Kankuro replied. "They…Gaara is…bleeding…!"

"This is bad," Temari stated. "Really, really bad."

"We'd better get out of here before he kills everyone," Kankuro muttered. Temari nodded and the two siblings turned around. To their shock, Shino was standing behind them with his hands in his pockets. "What the—get out of the way!" Shino huffed then raised one of his hands above his head. The ground beneath Temari and Kankuro gave way and they fell into a pair of holes that had been dug by Shino's bugs, which still occupied the holes. "What the hell?"

"Don't worry, those bugs aren't poisonous," Shino stated. "They're only going to eat your chakra so that you can't fight back or run away." Temari and Kankuro tried to fight the swarms of bugs, but there were simply too many. "Now the bugs I sent after your brother earlier however…"

"MY BLOOD," Gaara yelled. "IT'S MY BLOOD!"

"Great, now he's super pissed," Hinata sniped. "Great work guys."

"He's a damn Jinchuriki," Zaku stated, emphasizing every word. "What the hell do you want from a team of Genin?" Gaara turned his murderous eyes to the three visible on the ground. "Uh oh…"

"DIE!" Gaara threw his arms forward, flinging his sand at the Genin. Zaku, Dosu, and Hinata prepared themselves, but suddenly the sand fell out of the air and rained on the ground. The Konoha ninja looked with shock as Gaara's eyes rolled into the back of his head before he hit the ground.

"What the hell just happened," Dosu asked, turning his head to Zaku.

"I did," Shino replied as he approached the group. "My insects that Gaara 'crushed,' remember?" Zaku quickly went through the memories of the battle, and images of Gaara's sand crushing a large number of Shino's bugs popped into his head. "Granted Gaara did kill a number of them, but there was no way even he could crush all of them. They're practically microscopic individually. Some of them were poisonous, so once he used the sand he used to crush my bugs as his armor, they were able to get onto his skin and inject him with their venom. He's not dead though, just paralyzed for a few minutes. Long enough for us to take the scroll and run."

"Damn, that's some serious thinking," Zaku admitted.

"Your traps weren't so bad either," Shino replied.

"Right, if you two are done making out, who gets the scroll," Hinata asked, glaring her active Byakugan at Zaku and Dosu.

"We will," a voice called out. All heads turned towards Sasuke who walked out of the bushes with Sakura's arm behind her back and a kunai to her throat. "Otherwise she gets it." Sakura's expression showed fear and betray as she looked pleadingly to her teammates. Zaku and Dosu exchanged the same knowing glances to each other. In an instant, they stepped aside, allowing Hinata and Shino to walk past them. Hinata quickly ran up and snatched the scroll out of Gaara's possession before standing next to Sasuke.

"I say kill her and be done with it," Hinata muttered.

"That'd be dishonorable," Shino replied as he walked next to his teammates. "Plus I have no idea how long my poison will last in a Jinchuriki's system. If you kill or even harm Sakura, those two will come chasing after us, leaving a trail for Gaara to follow. If you let her go, then we part our separate ways, then Gaara won't be able to go after both of us." Sasuke stared at Shino for a long moment before nodding and releasing Sakura. "Run, get out of here while you still can."

Sakura nodded then sprinted towards her teammates who were already running. The three jumped into the forest and made all haste to get the hell away from Gaara. The Jinchuriki was groaning and grunting as he commanded his body to move, but got no results. The other three Konoha Genin gave Gaara one last look before vanishing in a blur. Gaara roared with anger at his first real defeat.

* * *

In the dead of night, hours after the battle, Naruto, Neji, and Kiba just made it to the tower safe and sound. Kiba sighed with relief, having been eaten alive by mosquitoes for last few hours. Naruto and Neji walked forward and entered the first door then found.

"We made it," Kiba screamed, throwing his arms up in the air in victory.

"Sure did Fang," Neji replied. Kiba gave a puzzled look to Neji, but eventually realized that they were switching back to code names. Neji was always the subtle one of the group.

"So what now guys," Naruto asked, turning to his brunette companions. "It's a dead end. Should we open the scrolls now?"

"Might as well try it," Kiba murmured. Neji nodded and knelt down along with Naruto. The two unraveled the scrolls across the floor. A cloud of smoke emerged from the scrolls, revealing a figure standing before them. A man with tan skin and a scar running across his nose, hair pulled back into a ponytail stood before them with a stern look on his face.

"Oh," the man exclaimed. "Looks like you guys made it."

"Uh yeah…who are you?"

"My name is Iruka. Basically I'm just here to grant you three access to the next stage. Here." The Chunin turned around then made a quick hand sign. The back wall began to tremble and slowly rise up, revealing a hidden passage. "Hurry up and go already. Sheesh…" The three teammates looked to each other and shrugged before walking further into the complex.

"So how many other teams do you think have passed already," Naruto asked.

"There's no telling really," Neji murmured. "It could be any number of contestants waiting for us."

"We still have a couple of days before the second stage is actually over though right," Kiba asked.

"That's right," Neji replied with a quick nod. "Most likely we'll have to stay in this tower for a few days so that they can tell each team's sensei about it and bring them here. Until then, let's not try to pick fights with the other teams that are here. The last thing we need is for-,"

"SAKURA-CHAN!" Naruto bolted forward. Kiba and Neji both slumped forward and sighed with disbelief at their teammate's behavior. Sakura whirled around with a surprised look on her face, which quickly changed to a bright smile once she saw the blonde coming towards her.

"Hey Ryu! You made it!" Zaku and Dosu, both of whom were sitting down, looked up to see Naruto. Zaku went back to focusing on something he was mixing up while Dosu watched his teammate and the blonde boy.

"Of course, you didn't think that we wouldn't be able to make it did ya," Naruto questioned smugly. "What other teams are here?"

"Well we were the first ones here," Sakura replied almost sheepishly. Dosu and Zaku snapped their heads, glaring at the back of Sakura's head. "We sort of got lucky I guess. Zaku is really good with setting traps. One team got reckless and tripped it off."

"Oh really, that's really lucky."

"Very lucky," Zaku murmured before lowering his eyes. Sakura turned her head, giving a forgiving stare to her teammates before turning back to Naruto.

"Well it's great that you're here. There's another team of Konoha shinobi upstairs. They got here a few hours before us evidently."

"Anyone else," Neji asked.

"So far no," Dosu replied. "It's strange enough for three teams to have completed this earlier in the second stage anyway. I wouldn't be surprised if we don't see any new faces for a few days."

"So…what do we do for fun while we wait?" Dosu, Zaku, and Sakura shrugged in response.

Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the echoing sound of approaching footsteps. All six heads turned to the side, eyes widened slightly with shock, as they saw a single figure approaching out of the darkness. A man with an orange spiral mask, wearing a black trench coat with a hood down walked forward. Naruto's eyes widened with horror and a cold sweat came over him. Neji's eyes hardened, noticing Naruto's body tensing. Kiba's jaw dropped with surprise as he pointed an accusing finger at Tobi.

"What the hell, how'd you get two more scrolls?"

Tobi remained silent as he approached, walking towards Sakura and Naruto. The masked man slowed his pace as he approached the Jinchuriki in disguise. Tobi kept his head turned towards Naruto as he walked by. The blonde shuddered under his gaze, believing that there was a Sharingan hidden behind that mask. Tobi snapped his head forward and continued down the hall in silence. Naruto kept his eyes on Tobi's back as if the man would turn around and attack at any moment.

"Who the hell is that guy," Zaku asked, breaking the silence. "And why the hell is someone that old a Genin?"

"His name is Tobi and he's usually as annoying as hell," Kiba replied. "But why the hell didn't he say a single word." The spiky haired brunette turned to Naruto. "And why the hell was he looking at you? Neji was the one who jacked the scroll from him." Naruto snapped his head away from Tobi, staring at the floor with distraught eyes. "Hey, you okay man?" Neji placed a hand on Kiba's shoulder, causing the latter to look over his shoulder.

"Tobi casted a genjutsu on him remember," Neji whispered. "For whatever reason, Tobi chose Naruto, plus we have no idea what that genjutsu did to him. Be reasonable." Kiba lowered his eyes then looked to his teammate.

"Are you alright Ryu," Sakura asked. Naruto shook his head, coming out of a daze as he looked up at Sakura. "You look really shaken up…"

"It's nothing. It's just…that guy's is…really weird. If any of you have to fight him I'd be careful…"

"The guy looks like he's twenty something and he's still a Genin," Zaku stated bluntly. "I don't think I'd have a whole lot to worry about."

"Maybe he's a Jinchuriki," Dosu stated. Naruto, Kiba, and Neji flinched at the last word Dosu uttered. "Ya know, like Gaara?"

"Okay, if that weird mask wearing dude is a Jinchuriki, then I'll put my guard up." The three ninjas in disguise sighed with relief. Naruto was in the clear. "But like these guys said: he's just an annoying guy, who for some reason, is still a Genin."

"I'm gonna laugh when you have to fight him," Dosu said, smirking under his bandages. Zaku rolled his eyes and shook his head. Sakura looked from her teammates back at Naruto who was still visibly upset.

"I uh…need to use the restroom," Naruto finally spoke.

"I'll show ya where it is," Dosu offered. "Follow me." The hunched over Genin stood up and started to walk down the hall. Naruto followed after him, leaving a worried Sakura, Kiba, and Neji behind.

**

* * *

So, yeah…I couldn't find a good ending for this chapter. The next chapter will pick up right where this one left off, and then the preliminaries will start. Yes, there will be preliminaries, and yes, there are more contestants yet to come. I'm not sure if I'll be able to get all the fights into one chapter, but hey, we'll see soon enough won't we? After the Chunin Exams though, it'll all be more war-ier than it has been lately. Anywho, hope you enjoyed this chapter. Read and review please =)**


	12. Preliminaries Pt I

Naruto sighed heavily as he splashed water of his face. All Tobi did was stare at him and Naruto got the jitters. The blonde's eyes moved upward as he thought for a moment before giving himself a dead gaze to himself in the mirror. Kiba would most likely crack a joke about Naruto being scared and coincidently having to go to the bathroom. Naruto shook his head then turned the water off. The blonde looked up and his entire face went pale with fear. Tobi was standing at the other side of the bathroom, arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the wall.

"Heya," the masked man greeted calmly. Naruto remained frozen, eyes fixated on the man's reflection. "Tobi wanted to apologize for the battle out there."

"What was that genjutsu you put on me," Naruto snapped as he whirled around, facing the masked man. "You suddenly became stronger, and you had a different voice and you had the Sharingan!"

"What, Tobi doesn't have the Sharingan."

"Then show me otherwise." Naruto lowered his head, glaring intently at Tobi whose expression remained a mystery. "Let me see under that mask and prove to me you don't have the Sharingan, or I might tell Danzo and the others about it!" Tobi's shoulders shook as he started to laugh. Naruto tensed, expecting the same, dark voice that he heard in the genjutsu.

"Tobi doesn't think that'd be such a smart idea," the man-boy replied. Tobi turned to the door then walked off, waving to Naruto as he left. "See ya later alligator!" As the door closed, Naruto relaxed a bit. Why shouldn't he tell the others that Tobi might have a Sharingan, and could be more of a danger than he's letting on?

'_Son of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki,'_ the dark voice went off in Naruto's head. The boy closed his eyes, almost as if he regretting asking the question. _'And Jinchuriki host of the Kyuubi, the nine tailed fox spirit.'_

Naruto sighed heavily, looking back at his reflection in the mirror. Danzo would be more interested in retaking his Jinchuriki than some goofy idiot with the Sharingan. Naruto shook his head then walked out of the bathroom.

A few days later, the second stage of the Exams had closed, and there were a large number of new teams that had been brought in. The teams stood in rows, one behind the other while facing their senseis, the third stage proctor and the Hokage himself with Orochimaru on one side and an ANBU captain on his other. Naruto leaned out from the back of the line and looked at Yahiko, who gazed upon the boy with his piercing blue eyes.

Yahiko didn't show it, but he was proud of the boys for surviving and making it to the third stage. Anko looked over at the Hokage to her right and then to her team, smiling with approval. Sakura and Zaku flashed a visible smile back as did Dosu, but his couldn't be seen. Kakashi's eyes were hardened upon his students as if ordering them that they'd better pass this too or else. Guy looked at his team with proud admiration, smiling down at Lee. The young Genin in the red jumpsuit smiled back at his sensei, eyes burning with the flames of youth.

Danzo stepped forward, his single, tired eye scanning the Genin carefully. Finally, his eye fixated forward before he spoke, "First, let me congratulate each and everyone of you for making it this far. To make it through the second stage is no small feat. It took discipline, skill, and ruthlessness to make it as far as you did. With that said, there are too many of you to take to the third stage of the Exams."

"What," Sasuke snapped, practically snarling with rage. Kakashi's eyes widened with rage at the incompetence of his star pupil.

"We didn't expect for eighteen of you to make it this far," Danzo explained. "And we cannot afford to take you all to the next stage. So instead, we'll be holding a preliminary between the second and third stages to weed out the weaklings. We'll hold a series of one-on-one matches against opponents selected at random. The winner of these fights will move onto the third stage, and the loser will not. These matches are no hold bars. You fight with the intention to kill. You may choose to either incapacitate your opponent or simply knock them out. You do not have to kill your opponent to win. With that said…" Danzo turned around, looking at a giant black screen. "Choose the first match."

The screen lit up and everyone's names started to fly across the board at unreadable speeds. After a few seconds, the screen froze with the first two contestants named. Dosu huffed, smiling under his bandages. Choji's eyes narrowed as he growled lowly to himself.

"Choji Akimichi and Dosu Kinuta, step forward." The two Konoha shinobi walked forward while everyone else went up to the stands with their teammates and sensei.

Guy and his students stood next to Yahiko and his team towards the center of the right railing. Anko's team stood closer to the stairs on the same half of the arena, as oppose to Danzo, Orochimaru, and the ANBU captain who stood at the opposite end. Kakashi and his pupils stood on the opposite side of the arena, facing directly across from Guy and Yahiko's teams. The Suna team stood closer to the wall, keeping their distance from the mysterious Tobi who was directly across from Danzo. Two Kiri shinobi, along with their sensei, stood across from Anko's team.

"This'll be interesting," Zaku murmured to Sakura. "You think old tubs of fun will win against Dosu?" Sakura shrugged as she leaned forward on the railing.

"We'll just have to wait and see," the pink haired kunoichi finally said. Zaku smirked, confident in his friend's abilities.

The proctor had a small fit of coughs before he signaled for the match to begin. Choji made a quick hand signs, "Partial expansion jutsu!"

The brunette threw his arm forward as it expanded to massive proportions. Dosu bent backwards, standing on his hands and feet, as Choji's fist smashed into the back wall. Dosu groaned with stress before Choji's arm shrank back down. The hunched over Genin lifted his hands off the ground, sighing with relief as he was back in his normal hunched over state. Choji scowled as he rushed forward, screaming as he pulled his fist back. Dosu chuckled with amusement. Anko's student sprung into the air as Choji swung forward. The husky boy's eyes widened with shock until Dosu landed behind him. Choji swung backwards at Dosu. The hunched boy grinned before he lifted up his arm. Choji struck the metal device on Dosu's arm, causing it to vibrate and hum loudly. Dosu moved his only visible eye back at Choji as sound started to flow into the boy's ears. Choji groaned before he staggered back, becoming disoriented. Everything was spinning and Choji was seeing a constant blur. The husky Akimichi bent over then heaved on the floor before falling on his side with a heavy thud.

"Disappointing," Dosu muttered.

"The winner is Dosu Kinuta." The hunched ninja took his time and walked towards the stands.

"Wow," Naruto murmured. "He took him out in less than a minute."

"Don't be too surprised," Shikamaru replied lazily, leaning against the back wall. "Choji forgot what Dosu's abilities were and paid the price for it to say the least."

"Indeed," Guy added, "The flames of youth don't burn that brightly in Choji." Shikamaru sighed before glancing over at his sensei.

'_Again with the flames of youth…'_

"Perhaps you made the wrong call by letting that boy go Orochimaru," Danzo mused. The Sannin simply chuckled then watched as Dosu walked towards his team.

"I don't think so. His potential is limited, same as Zaku's." Danzo hummed quietly before turning to the proctor to continue.

"Next match up…" All eyes went to the screen as it flashed a series of names with blinding speeds. The names stopped, "Ryu and Temari." Naruto's eyes widened with astonishment.

"Alright," Kiba exclaimed, slapping his teammate on the back. "Go get em tiger!"

"Y-yeah, sure." Naruto looked across the room, seeing a blonde kunoichi with a giant fan on her back jumping off the railings and landing smoothly onto the ground. Naruto placed both of his hands on the railing, lifted himself up with his legs straight up in the air, before he dropped off onto the ground.

"Heh, Temari won't have any trouble with a squirt like that," Kankuro stated with a cocky smirk.

Orochimaru's eyes widened briefly while Danzo's narrowed. "It couldn't be," Orochimaru muttered. He leaned towards Danzo and barely whispered, "Naruto Uzumaki?" Danzo's eye hardened on the boy, his reflection shining in the old man's eye. "What do we do Danzo?" The Hokage remained silent, eye fixated on the boy.

Tobi, by himself and directly across the room from the Hokage, looked up at the old man then down at Naruto. _'Don't do anything too foolish now boy…'_ Tobi's eye went up to Danzo, _'Same goes for you old man…'_

Temari had her brother's smirk on her face, but Naruto's face remained blank, observing his opponent carefully. He took extra careful note of the giant weapon the girl had a hold of. "Begin," Hayate snapped.

Temari's eyes widened as she threw her fan outward, unleashing a powerful gust of wind. Naruto gasped with shock before shielding his face before he was thrown into the back wall. Temari smiled deviously before she sent another gust of wind, this time unleashing small blades of wind. Naruto quickly threw his feet up against the wall, shot up, and grabbed the railings where the other shinobi watched. Temari's attack blew against the wall, leaving a few small cuts across the stone.

"What's wrong," Temari asked smugly. "Come and get me little brat!"

"Alright, don't say I didn't warn you!" Naruto focused his chakra into his feet before launching himself forward.

Temari saw the boy pull out a kunai into his hand. The blonde kunoichi cried out as she swung her fan back and forth twice, unleashing two powerful gusts of wind. Naruto hurled his kunai slightly to the left. Temari watched the blade as it imbedded itself into the wall behind her. The kunoichi's eyes widened with realization, seeing a chain welded to the end of the knife. Naruto pulled forward on the chain, swinging himself out of the way. The blonde rolled across the ground then ran as quickly as he could. Temari had to bring her fan around before attacking. Naruto was already closing in on Temari. The Jinchuriki shot into the air, spinning head over heels as he fell towards Temari. The kunoichi raised her closed fan up to shield herself. Naruto hooked his knee around the fan, placed his hands on Temari's shoulders, and then shot back. Temari cried out with fear as her fan was pried from her grasp. Naruto slid across the ground in a crouched position before standing up and slamming the fan on the ground by his side.

"I'd say that qualifies as a victory," Naruto stated with a smug grin. Temari's eyes widened with rage. Naruto's eyes hardened on the blonde, "Give up now."

"No way," Kankuro murmured. "This kid…bested Temari! Nobody beats Temari! She's the smartest Genin in all the village!" Gaara remained silent and unaffected by the fact his older sister was beaten.

"Give up," Naruto repeated. "That way you can walk away without any bruises."

"Screw off," Temari shouted as she sprinted forward. Naruto sighed, lowering his eyes to the ground.

"Ah crap," Neji murmured.

Naruto grabbed Temari's fan with both hands then swung it forward without opening it. Danzo's eye flickered a bit, but his curiosity went away once he realized the boy was just using it for a blunt object. Temari ducked under Naruto's strike and attempted to move around him. Naruto spun around then slammed the fan in Temari's path, resting his hand on top of it and preventing her from running. The blonde kunoichi stopped, gasping with shock before she gave a glance towards the unblinking Naruto. Temari quickly reached forward and seized her weapon with both hands. Naruto dove forward, tackling Temari to the ground. The two blondes rolled around on the ground for a moment until Naruto had Temari lying on her stomach and he sat on her back with one of her arms behind her back and Naruto's extra hand pressing against the back of her head. Temari scowled angrily, glancing up over her shoulder before looking for her fan which was well out of reach.

"Give up," Naruto snapped, his tone hardening.

"Never!" Temari started to squirm and move as much as she could, trying to throw the Genin in disguise off her back.

Naruto sighed then removed his hand from Temari's head, "Fine then. Don't say I didn't warn you…" Naruto pulled out a kunai, which Temari could clearly see. The kunoichi's eyes widened with shock as Naruto twirled the blade around, moving his hand up high above his head. "Last chance…"

"Y-you won't do it," Temari stated. "You're bluffing!"

Sakura looked on with worry. She was use to Ryu being cheerful and bright. Now he was threatening to kill a defenseless girl unless she gave up. It was an unsettling sight for the pink haired kunoichi.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," Naruto said as he sighed with disappointment. The boy quickly threw his arm up, ready to bring the blade down upon his enemy. Sakura quickly turned her head to the side, shutting her eyes tightly.

"I GIVE UP," Temari shouted, her eyes also sealed tight. The blonde kunoichi shuddered with fear for a moment before she cracked one eye open. To her shock, Naruto never even lowered his arm.

"The winner is: Ryu." The blonde grinned widely before putting his blade away and getting off Temari.

"Y-you've gotta be kidding me!"

"Nope," Naruto replied with a chipper grin.

The boy held his hand out to help Temari up. The kunoichi angrily scoffed before slapping Naruto's hand away. In her rage, Temari walked up to her fan, picked it up then stormed off next to her brothers. Sakura sighed with relief that the blue eyed boy didn't kill someone in front of her own eyes. Naruto shrugged before jumping up on the railings next to his teammates.

"I was worried there for a second," Kiba replied with a devious sneer.

"You almost hit a woman," Neji added with a taunting grin.

"Yeah, yeah, shut up," Naruto murmured, leaning on the rails next to Kiba.

Danzo stared at the blonde the entire time. There was an unmistakable resemblance to Minato Namikaze, that could not be denied. Still, the boy didn't show enough during his battle to be linked to either Kushina Uzumaki or Minato Namikaze. Minato wasn't afraid to kill in cold blood, much like the boy almost did with Temari. The fact that he didn't meant that there was no solid connection if Minato was the father. Kushina on the other hand, would've beaten the girl to a pulp with her own fan until Temari gave up, or she would've used brute force until one of the two of them couldn't move. The boy showed skill, that was for certain, but Danzo needed more than a resemblance before he was going to jump to any rash conclusions. The old Hokage turned away and nodded to Hayate to continue.

Naruto moved his eyes to the side before turning his head to look back at Yahiko. The orange haired man gazed back at Naruto who jerked his head to the side. Yahiko huffed, actually impressed he noticed Danzo watching him. The blue eyed man looked over at the Hokage to make sure he wasn't looking before turning back to Naruto. Yahiko simply nodded forward. Naruto nodded back then turned to the screen just as two more names came up.

"Shino Aburame vs. Zaku Abumi," Hayate announced just before he started coughing.

"Go show that loser what you're made of," Hinata said with a devious glint in her white eyes. Shino seemed to ignore her completely as he jumped over the railings and landed on the ground.

"Ah crap," Zaku murmured as he started to stretch out his neck. "I didn't even have enough time to set up some traps…"

"You can do it Zaku," Sakura replied. "Just stay focused and watch out for those bugs. You remember what he did with Gaara."

"Remember, he's a member of the Aburame Clan and Kakashi's student," Anko added, "So whatever you do-,"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah I got it," Zaku shot back before diving over the railing. Anko smirked and rolled her eyes. Zaku stuck his hands out to catch himself before he rolled forward, crouching before Shino who had his hands in his pockets. Zaku stood up and waved casually with one hand on his hip, "Yo."

"Shino Aburame, Zaku Abumi, are you both ready," Hayate asked.

"Ready," Shino replied.

"Yeah, why not," Zaku shrugged.

"Begin!"

The two stood motionless, staring at one another. The room fell deafly silent as the two combatants looked one another down. Shino's expression was unreadable due to his sunglasses and face being covered by the high collar. Zaku simply looked annoyed and bored at the same time, while his eyes studied his opponent carefully. Naruto growled impatiently before turning to Yahiko.

"Yo, what gives? Why are they just standing there?"

"Clearly you don't recognize a battle of wits when you see it," Shikamaru replied with his arms folded over his chest. "Those two aren't the type of person to just duke it out immediately. They both know each others' abilities inside and out. Shino always gives a hundred percent against any opponent. And if Zaku can study his opponent before a battle, he'll obsess over some way to beat him. It's only luck that their two teams hate each other. They've gotten into so many fights since graduating the Academy, it's ridiculous."

"So…they're fighting with their minds," Naruto questioned.

"Yeah, I guess we'll just wait until one of them falls asleep," Kiba exclaimed.

Shikamaru cracked a smirk, his lazy eyes glinting faintly, "Just watch…"

Zaku's eyes snapped to life as he flung a kunai forward while twirling backwards. Shino grunted as he jerked his head to the side, pulling his hands out of his pockets. Zaku came back around, throwing two shuriken forward as he slid to a halt. Shino's sunglasses reflected the light before he spun to the side, narrowly avoiding one shuriken as another narrowly grazed his face. The young Aburame looked up and barely had time to gasp before a pair of feet met his face. Shino was pushed back, nearly lifted off both feet. Zaku quickly twisted around in a flash before he threw his right palm up. Shino scowled as he lowered his head before he was looking down the barrel of Zaku's palm. A powerful blast of compressed air and sound threw the boy upward, causing him to smash the back of his head against the railings right in front of Hinata and Sasuke. The young Hyuga heiress cried out with shock as the impact caused the bars to hum dully. Sasuke merely narrowed his eyes before Shino hit the ground with a thud. Zaku slowly strutted backwards, keeping his eyes fixated on Shino.

"Whoa," Naruto murmured.

"That's what you get when you think things through," Shikamaru stated. "Rushing in to things and thinking of a plan on the fly is such a drag…"

"Man, that kid is fast," Kiba said with awe in his tone.

Zaku kept his breathing steady while his eyes narrowed in solely on Shino. He wasn't going to rush in if the boy was just playing dead. "Shino Aburame, you have five seconds to get up," Hayate announced. Just then, Shino's arms began to move under him, pushing his body up as the boy rose to his feet.

Zaku cracked his neck before waiting for Shino's move. The Aburame boy raised his arms up, summoning a massive swarm of bugs from behind his body. Zaku's face dropped at the sight before he started moving backwards again. Shino's bugs remained aloft for a second before he threw both arms downward. Zaku stopped and narrowed his eyes on the bugs. One swarm of them shot downward, forming a sharpened pillar. Although Zaku doubted they could impale him, he still didn't want those bugs touching him. The Abumi rushed to the side, running as quickly as he could. Shino moved his bugs towards Zaku and the path he was running in. Zaku ducked, jumped, dove, and rolled to avoid the swarms of bugs, and overall not a single one touched him. This annoyed Shino to no end. Finally, Shino just threw both of his arms forward, summoning a whirlwind of tiny insects to surround Zaku.

"Ah crap!" Zaku looked around as the swirling mass of microscopic bugs closed in around him. The boy looked up, seeing that none of them were blocking above his head. "Of course," the boy murmured sarcastically. With his hands opened, Zaku launched himself into the air with his air holes, all the way to the ceiling. Zaku slapped his hands on the ceiling, hanging there while looking down. "Woo, look at the view from up here!"

"Childish tricks," Shino stated.

"Childish," Zaku repeated. "Hey, I'm not using chakra here. It's all suction baby!" Shino huffed before launching his bugs forward.

Zaku lifted his lower body up, using the chakra in his feet to stick to the ceiling before he ran on all fours like a primate. Surprisingly enough, Zaku was rather fast as he scurried across the ceiling, once again avoiding all of Shino's swarms. Zaku looked down, seeing a swarm was coming to block him off. Letting the chakra in his feet explode outward, Zaku launched himself forward towards the railings. Shino cried out as he sent his bugs forward. Zaku landed on the wall behind a few observers. Shino gasped before he stopped his bugs suddenly. Zaku was standing on the wall behind Danzo and Orochimaru with a smirk on his face. All eyes were widened with shock as Shino's bugs floated harmlessly in front of the Hokage.

"How _dare_ you," Orochimaru seethed. Danzo simply remained still, watching the smirking boy closely. Zaku's eyes were focused on Shino, and despite using the Hokage as a human shield, Zaku was grinning widely.

"Zaku, you'd better have a good excuse for this," Anko muttered softly. Even she doubted she could do anything to save the boy from something like this.

"Are you going to hide or fight," Shino demanded.

"Wait for it, wait for it…NOW!" Zaku threw his hand forward, pointing to Shino. All eyes snapped back to the young Aburame who simply stared at Zaku. The room fell in dead silence as Shino looked around his proximity carefully.

"What type of game are you playing? Get down here and—UGH!" Shino lurched forward, clinging to his chest.

"Okay, I was a few seconds off…" The young Aburame fell to his hands and knees, still clutching his chest as he found it hard to breathe.

"H-how did you…"

"I'm sorry, what," Zaku shouted obnoxiously with his hand cupping his ear. "I can't seem to hear you! You're blacking out in three…two…one." Shino fell to his side and began shaking violently. "And that ladies and gentlemen is what I do best: distraction!"

"Distracting him from what," Danzo questioned as two medics quickly rushed in.

"A small, slow acting, but very dangerous poison," Zaku replied, hardly even realizing he was talking to the Hokage. "It's something we picked up in the Forest of Death. Sakura had been learning some medical ninjutsu and poisons and junk, and we decided to pick some up and use it for ourselves. I dosed my shuriken with them. All it took was a tiny graze and the poison was inside of him."

"The Aburame usually use their insects to fight off any poisons…"

"Yeah, but that's what that whole display at the beginning was for. I wanted to piss Shino off so that he'd use all of those creepy crawlies inside of him to try and finish me off before I got another beating on him. Besides, according to Sakura, the poison lies dormant for a few minutes, remaining unnoticed and undetected until it strikes."

"Lord Danzo," Orochimaru snapped. "This boy _used_ you as a means of defense!" Zaku's grin disappeared as he looked down at the old Kage who turned to him, single eye fixated on the black haired boy. Zaku immediately dropped from the wall and bowed on his hands and knees with his forehead to the floor. "You should make an example out of him."

"I'm sorry lord Hokage," Zaku immediately droned, all humor or lightheartedness from his tone gone. "Please forgive me sir…" Danzo took two steps forward, towering over the now frightened Genin. All eyes were on Zaku, waiting to see what the ruthless Hokage would do to him. Zaku closed his eyes, waiting for a beating or even death.

"Stand up," Danzo ordered. Zaku was on his feet in a second. Danzo turned to Shino, who was being tended to, before looking back at Zaku. "Well done my boy." Zaku's eyes nearly popped out of his head while everyone else gasped or gapped with shock.

"W-wait, what," Zaku asked.

"What is the meaning of this lord Danzo," Orochimaru snapped. "This boy put you in harms way for a simple preliminaries match and you're telling him well done?"

"Indeed," Danzo replied. "The boy only needed time, and he stalled Shino Aburame perfectly. He planned ahead, all the way from the second stage, and used a tactical advantage to his benefit. I'd say that offers congratulations in my books." Zaku's jaw dropped with amazement at the Hokage. "Just don't do it again."

"Y-yes sir," Zaku stammered, "Never again sir." Danzo nodded to Zaku before turning back around.

"The winner is Zaku Abumi," Hayate announced. Zaku quickly moved towards his team as if worried that Danzo may strike him regardless. Sakura was the first to congratulate Zaku with a good punch in the back of the head.

"OW! What the hell was that for?"

"You IDIOT," Sakura snapped. "You could've gotten in so much trouble for what you did!"

"Yeah, because my plan _wasn't_ freaking ingenious! Do you know how hard it is to dodge millions of tiny bugs at one time? It's not easy sister!"

"Hey, just be happy you got through," Dosu stated. "Now if we can get Sakura through her match we'd have our whole team going to the third stage."

"Yeah, so try not to screw it up kitten," Zaku snapped. Sakura's eyes narrowed, burning with rage towards Zaku who gave her an equally intense stare, causing sparks to fly between their death glares.

"Hey, enough," Anko exclaimed, stepping between the two of them. "If you both don't stop acting like this I'll hand you to Kakashi for a week." Zaku and Sakura huffed, snapping their backs to one another with their noses up in a snobbish manner. Anko sighed as she looked to Dosu for an explanation. The hunched over Genin simply shrugged before turning around.

"Ah crap," Dosu murmured. The boy's teammates turned around curiously before looking up at the screen.

"Kankuro and Sakura Haruno," Hayate announced. "Please come on down."

"You're freaking kidding," Sakura snapped. "Damn it, now I've gotta follow up the kid who used the Hokage as a shield…"

"Is that my official title now," Zaku asked, turning to his sensei. "Boy who uses his leader as a lifesaver?" Anko sighed, shaking her head as she watched Sakura walk down to the ground floor. The kunoichi stood across from the smirking Suna Genin.

"GO SAKURA," Naruto called out, "Kick his ass!" Sakura's head snapped down as she used her bangs in a vain attempt to hide her blush. Kankuro moved his eyes up to Naruto and then back at Sakura.

"So, that's your boyfriend huh?"

"He's just my friend," Sakura snapped, glaring daggers at Kankuro.

"Well, if I beat you that little brat is gonna be upset, and I'll have a chance to take him on in the third round. I'd say that'd be good enough to avenge my sister."

"Well it'd be hard to avenge her without getting to the third stage now wouldn't it," Sakura questioned. Kankuro huffed before pulling something off his back. _'Wonder what that could be…'_

"Begin," Hayate exclaimed.

"Bring it on girly," Kankuro muttered with a dark tone.

Sakura quickly made a hand sign, causing Kankuro to spring into action. The bandages around the object Kankuro carried on his back unraveled themselves, revealing a puppet that shot forward. Sakura gasped with shock as she was suddenly tangled within countless limbs of the puppet. Kankuro chuckled as he tightened his puppet's grip on Sakura, causing her to cry out with pain.

"I give up," Sakura shouted.

"Nah, I think I'll just break everything but your neck!" Suddenly, Kankuro felt a blade at his neck, causing his eyes to widen with shock. The boy glanced over his shoulder, seeing Sakura standing behind him, holding the kunai at his neck. "Wh-what the hell? Shadow clones?"

"Nope," Sakura pointed forward. Kankuro followed the finger and was horrified with what he saw. His puppet, Crow, was clinging to nothing but itself.

"H-how though!"

"Genjutsu," Sakura replied simply with a small shrug. "I figure that since you're from Sunagakure, and judging from your fingerless gloves, that you're a puppeteer. From what I hear, only Jonin rank or higher puppeteers broaden their abilities past puppetry. Mostly they focus on taijutsu in case an enemy gets near them, which makes a lot of sense. I haven't heard of a puppeteer that was skilled with genjutsu."

"Sakura Haruno is the winner," Hayate announced. Sakura pulled the blade away from Kankuro's neck, and then pumped her fist in the air before cheering in her victory. Kankuro scowled with pure rage, unable to fathom what'd just happened.

"THAT'D A GIRL," Anko shouted at the top of her lungs while leaning over the railing. The Jonin looked up at Kakashi with the world's biggest grin on her face. "How do ya like THAT Kakashi? My entire team is going to the third stage on their fist try!"

"That's right," Zaku added. "We freaking ROCK!" Zaku and Dosu slapped their hands against one another's before they chest-bumped. Kakashi was glaring angrily across the arena at Anko and her celebrating students, much like Hinata was. Sasuke didn't really care, as long as _he_ got to the third stage.

"Record timing too," Dosu exclaimed as Sakura walked towards them. "That took like what, ten seconds?"

"Yep, and I didn't have to use anyone as a hostage to win," Sakura replied, looking smugly at Zaku.

"Hey, you can insult me all you want, BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO THE THIRD STAGE!"

"Give me a freaking hug," Anko shouted as she embraced her three students at once. "I swear once this is done we're going out to eat, and I'll actually pay!"

"Seriously," Zaku asked energetically.

"Not an all-you-can-eat though."

"Awe," Zaku murmured disappointedly.

Naruto was watching the team celebrating with a smile on his face. The Jinchuriki kept his eyes on a specific kunoichi. Sakura glanced over, catching Naruto's eye. The blonde blushed faintly before waving to her. Sakura giggled then waved back before she was celebrating with her team again. Kiba, Neji, and Yahiko were all watching the blonde, grinning like idiots until Kiba approached Naruto.

"Man…what if you had to fight her in the third stage?" Kiba ducked a second before Naruto spun around, trying to punch his teammate's head off. Kiba stood back up and started laughing before Naruto got in his face.

"DON'T SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT!"

"And she's good with genjutsu no less," Neji stated. "Isn't that your worst area of expertise?"

"I hate you both…"

"Hinata Hyuga and Hizashi come down here," Hayate announced. Neji's smile was immediately wiped clean from his face. Naruto, Kiba, and Yahiko's eyes widened with shock before they turned to the screen to confirm the names. Sure enough, it had Hinata's name and Neji's alias.

"Alright, it's finally my turn." Hinata hopped over the railings.

Yahiko quickly knelt down next to Neji and pulled him close, "Listen Neji, I know this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for you, but don't blow our cover. I've learned a bit about Konoha just in the few days the second stage was going on. You can just give up now."

"Not a chance," Neji replied. The young Hyuga quickly shook off Yahiko's hand from his shoulder before he started to take his time walking across the walkway.

"Hey," Sakura called out as Neji moved in front of her. The Genin in disguise stopped and looked over in the kunoichi's direction. "Hizashi right?"

"Yes ma'am," Neji confirmed.

Sakura smirked before moving her eyes towards Hinata, "Give her hell." Neji smirked before he nodded. Sakura's smile widened before Neji started to walk towards the stairs.

"Naruto has good taste in women," Neji whispered to himself.

Neji stood across from Hinata, staring at her through his headband. Hinata grinned cockily at her opponent, almost finding it unfair that she had to fight a blind kid. However, she didn't care who she had to beat before becoming a Chunin, as long as she got it. Neji could scarcely contain himself. A chance to beat on the Hyuga Clan's heiress was a dream come true. Granted he couldn't use the Gentle Fist, or any other type of Hyuga fighting style, but he'd go out swinging nonetheless.

"Begin," Hayate snapped.

Hinata lunged forward, striking her palm at Neji. The brunette spun to the side and stood frozen as his hair fell back behind his head. Hinata spun around, jabbing her fingers at Neji. The Genin in disguise could've laughed before he ducked and spun under Hinata's strike. Neji then quickly thrusted his fist forward at Hinata. The heiress swatted Neji's attack away then thrusted her fingers at Neji's skull. The brunette jerked his head back, feeling the wind off Hinata's strike. Neji grabbed Hinata's wrist, twisted her arm before pulling it downward. Hinata winced with pain before thrusting her other palm forward. Neji pulled his head back and moved Hinata's arm downward as well. The heiress scowled while the rogue threw his head forward. The two heads collided as Hinata staggered backwards. Neji quickly rushed forward, intending to land another hit before she recomposed herself. Hinata shook her head before spinning around, summoning a swirling ball of chakra around her whole body. Neji stopped then quickly moved back until Hinata's rotation stopped.

"Nice headbutt," Dosu shouted.

"Give her another," Zaku demanded. Neji smirked, which only made Hinata angrier when she saw it.

"Fine, I guess I'll have to stop toying around," Hinata murmured. "I thought using an all seeing Doujutsu against a blind guy was unfair, but now I guess I'll just have to use my Byakugan anyway." Neji's smirk was now pressed into a hard line. "Yeah, I'd be scared too if I where you."

"Neji," Yahiko whispered, "Please give up…" Hinata's eyes closed for a moment before reopening with her kekkei genkai active.

"Alright…round two, lets go!" Hinata rushed forward with her arm already cocked back.

Neji narrowly avoided Hinata's strike towards his chest. The brunette quickly moved backwards, barely dodging each of Hinata's attacks.

"Come on man," Kiba shouted. "Get her good!"

"He's pretending to be blind, remember," Naruto murmured to his spiky haired companion. "There's not a whole lot he can do offensively without blowing his cover."

"Yeah I remember, but he still got a good headbutt in right?" Yahiko's eyes were wide with shock, trembling slightly with anxiety.

'_They don't understand. The Byakugan requires the user to flow chakra into their eyes when active. If Hinata's is active that means she can see a person's chakra flow, and if she hasn't said anything about Neji's eyes then…Neji literally is fighting blind…'_

Neji ducked under Hinata's jab, feeling her hand passing through his hair. Neji made a guess as to where she would be and threw his fist at her face. Hinata watched the fist coming at her before she pulled her head back with an even expression. The Hyuga heiress moved behind Neji in the blink of an eye then jabbed him twice around the shoulder area. Neji winced through his teeth as his whole arm hung limply by his side. Hinata grinned with pleasure. Neji quickly swung around, brining his limp arm flinging towards Hinata's face. The heiress ducked in surprise before pivoting around Neji. Her cousin quickly threw his foot outward before Hinata could prepare for a strike. The heiress pulled her head back, watching the foot come dangerously close to her chin. Hinata slid back a few feet as Neji spun around again before throwing a pair of shuriken at her. Hinata smirked as she noticed the shuriken were horribly thrown. She didn't even have to move as they passed by her. However, Hinata noticed something strange on the shuriken. As they both came to either side of her, she noticed there were needles four needles on both sides of the two shuriken with a small steel string attached to them. Hinata's eyes widened for a moment as Neji pulled his fingers back, launching the needles off the shuriken. Hinata quickly swatted one group of needles away, but the other four struck her in the back. The heiress scowled before turning to Neji in her classic stance.

"Well, aren't you quite the sneaky one," Hinata questioned.

"I do what I can with no eyes," Neji replied with a frown. Hinata grinned before lowering her stance.

"Well, I really didn't want to show this, but I guess you've left me no choice." Hinata held one arm forward and the other arm back, crouching as low as she could.

"That's," Sasuke began to say. Kakashi nodded once, his eyes focused on Hinata.

"That's the end of this match…"

**Next chapter should be out sometime this weekend.**


	13. Preliminaries Pt II

Hinata grinned before she slid her entire body around in a circle, "Eight Trigrams…" Neji gasped with shock before preparing himself. "TWO PALMS!"

"Stop this," Yahiko shouted.

Neji quickly jerked his body from one side to the next, narrowly avoiding Hinata's strikes, "Four palms!" Neji once ducked and swerved under her strikes. He had performed the Hyuga style Eight Trigrams Sixty Four Palms countless times. He knew how it worked and where to strike. All he needed to do was trust his instincts and maybe he'd make it through this jutsu alive. "Thirty two palms!" Neji continued to dodge in what looked like a graceful dance. He had to dodge thirty two more strikes and he'd be safe. "Eight Trigrams Sixty Four Palms," Hinata cried out. Neji dodged the last three strikes, including the often fatal open palm to the chest that would normally have blown his heart to confetti. Hinata moved back, taking a slightly altered stance. "Eight Trigrams…" Neji's eyes widened, as did his entire teams'.

'_That's impossible, there's only Sixty Four strikes! To double it would be…'_

"One Hundred and Twenty Eight Palms!" Hinata spun forward and began throwing her jabs around wildly. Neji had no idea that there was a continuity of the Sixty Four Palms attack. Now he had absolutely no idea how to counter.

Neji quickly ducked down and moved to the side. Hinata's first two strikes missed, but she spun around without lifting her feet up and struck towards her cousin in disguise, striking only his hair. Neji quickly moved forward to stop this new attack before he actually got hit. The brunette threw a fist forward, but Hinata gracefully spun around it. Hinata cried out with a grin on her face as she struck towards Neji. The brunette scowled before ducked and spinning around to the side. The boy stopped when he felt his back hit against the wall and stood in a combat ready stance. He heard no footsteps or Hinata screaming. He was well out of range now for her attack to continue.

"He survived Hinata's best attack," Sasuke said, shifting his eyes up to Kakashi.

"I noticed," the masked Jonin seethed. "This kid isn't normal. There's no way he should've been able to dodge Hinata's attacks so well."

Hinata's eyes narrowed in on her opponent, glaring daggers at him. Neji started breathing heavily, trying to catch a second wind. He had no idea where Hinata was for sure, and lord only knows what other tricks she has up her sleeve after the One Hundred and Twenty Eight Palms attack. Hinata's eyes scanned Neji, trying to see anything out of the normal, anything that could make up for his loss of sight. Finally, the heiress sneered with a discovery.

"That's how you do it…" Neji scowled angrily. "You send small bursts of chakra through your feet and through your hair. With your feet you can feel the vibrations of someone walking or sliding against the ground, while if I touch your hair, your chakra gives you a mental image of my entire body, stance, footing, and whatever else you would need to know what my next attack will be. You're a very sharp shinobi, I'll give you that much. But now that I know how you make up for your loss of sight, I'll just have to be careful to avoid that hair and move as little as possible."

"Hyuga Clan members usually focus on close range," Neji replied. "It'll be tough attacking me while keeping your distance."

"I just have to be quick enough," Hinata told herself.

'_No more messing around then…'_

Hinata rushed forward as quickly as she could. Neji lowered himself to prepare for the coming assault. The heiress struck first. Neji ducked then threw a fist back at her with impressive speed. Hinata pulled her body back to avoid the strike and then thrusted her palm forward again. The two continued to dodge and attack the other, but neither opponent ever hit. The two Hyugas were moving across the floor in what could be confused as an aggressive dance.

"Your teammate is most impressive," Lee exclaimed. "Fighting a natural prodigy and an heiress with nothing but sure willpower and determined drive!"

"Yeah," Naruto replied softly. "He sure is a stubborn one…"

'_Neji,'_ Yahiko thought. _'You're letting your pride get the best of you. There's no way you could win this without your Byakugan. Even if what Hinata said about your feet and hair is true, you're still fighting with an arm behind your back.'_

"My, my, you must've put that boy through some intensive training to be able to stand equal footing against Hinata Hyuga," Guy boomed loudly. "Truly this Hizashi has the flames of youth ROARING within him like an inferno! It gets my blood running just watching him!"

Neji spun around then thrusted both fists forward, intending to hit Hinata's upper chest and stomach. The heiress spun around then threw her palm at Neji's back. The rogue in disguise spun back around and knocked Hinata's arm to the side with the back of his hand.

"Come on," Sakura shouted. "Get her!"

"Oh man this must be hurting Hinata's pride like nobody's business," Dosu stated with a gleeful tone. "The all seeing princess unable to beat a kid who can't see jack!"

Neji and Hinata both struck at the same time with their right arms. Both combatants used their other arms to knock the other's out of the way. The two spun around and stood across from each other, panting heavily. Neji had no doubt if he _could_ use his Byakugan he could win this. However if he did then their cover would be blown. Hinata was scowling with rage. As Dosu said: her pride was taking a serious beating at the moment. Hinata grinned to herself, having the perfect tactic in mind.

"I'm so gonna enjoy taking you down," the heiress said with a grin.

Hinata rushed forward, causing Neji to snap to alarm and lower his stance. Neji got ready to strike once she got close enough. Hinata stopped suddenly, a few feet away from her opponent. Without warning, the heiress spun around, summoning her rotation. Neji cried out as the barrier barely touched him, but still had enough force to cause him to stumble and spin back. Hinata sprung forward, quickly enough that she broke through her own chakra before it could dissipate quickly enough. With a sadistic look in her eye, she pulled her hand back, ready to thrust her palm on his chest and blown his heart to shreds.

Yahiko's eyes widened at this realization then immediately sprung over the railings. Kakashi's head snapped up to the orange haired man before he too jumped off the stands. Danzo watched in silent intrigue. He knew that neither could make it in time. Tobi rested his arms on the rails, watching with an unreadable expression to any viewer. Secretly though, he was quite curious as to how Neji would last in this battle, and he wasn't disappointed thus far.

Neji planted his feet firmly on the ground, feeling Hinata's footsteps approaching. Hinata cried out as the thrusted her palm forward. Instinctively, Neji threw his arm up, knocking Hinata's strike out of the way before he thrusted his palm to her chest. There was a solid blow and an echoing thud. Yahiko and Kakashi froze a few yards away from their students, both of whom seemed frozen in time.

Hinata's eyes widened with shock before her head lowered and she coughed a mouthful of blood. She looked at her opponent's hand which was balled into a fist, barely clutching her shirt. Hinata moved her eyes up to Neji and opened her mouth to speak before she was engulfed by darkness. Hinata's body went limp as it fell forward. Neji held her up by her shirt, preventing her from hitting the ground with a thud. The rogue Hyuga gently lowered Hinata to the ground before taking a step back.

"The winner is: Hizashi," Hayate stated loudly.

"ALRIGHT," Sakura shouted, pumping her fist into the air.

Kakashi scowled before rushing forward as a group of medical ninja came onto the scene. Neji slowly stepped away, fearing the wrath Kakashi might inflict upon him. A firm hand was placed on Neji's shoulder, causing him to tense up with alarm.

"Come on," Yahiko said softly. Neji eased with relief before following his sensei. No one knew what Neji actually did though to win the match.

After a moment of stabilizing Hinata, the medics took her away and the next match was decided. Shikamaru sighed as he stood across from a large boy with orange hair and orange eyes: Jugo of Kirigakure.

"Begin."

Jugo rushed forward, drawing his fist back. Shikamaru sighed before pacing backwards with alarming speed. Jugo continued forward, keeping an equal distance with Shikamaru. Finally, the Konoha Genin sprung up against the back wall and waited for Jugo to strike. Shikamaru jumped against the wall the vaulted off and landed behind Jugo as his fist tore through solid stone.

"Well, that strength could be really troublesome," Shikamaru stated with a weary sigh. Jugo scowled before moving to attack, but found himself unable to move. "I guess I'll just have to deal with that subtly."

"Wh-what the," Jugo stammered.

"Shadow possession jutsu," Shikamaru answered. "And this…is the shadow strangle jutsu!" The shadows around Jugo's feet slithered up his body, making a hand around his throat. "Give up or I'll break your neck…" Jugo screamed and grunted like a beast, trying to break free of the jutsu. "Fine then, be that way." The shadow went around Jugo's neck and head before twisting it to the side with a sickening snap. The boy's body went limp.

Shikamaru's shadow unwrapped the boy and came back at Shikamaru's feet. Jugo's body hit the floor with a thud.

"The winner is Shikamaru Nara."

Danzo sighed lightly. That won't look good if he wanted an alliance with Kiri. A group of medical ninja in black came onto the scene and took the body out of the area. Danzo shifted his eye over to Orochimaru. Medics in black were the trademark of Orochimaru's personal medical staff. What in the world could the sinister Sannin want with a dead body? With Orochimaru, Danzo knew it could be any number of things.

The next pair of names came up, "Sasuke Uchiha and Fang, please come down here."

"Alright," Kiba exclaimed. "Now it's my time to shine!" Yahiko quickly placed his hand on Kiba's shoulder before kneeling next to him.

"Listen carefully," Yahiko whispered. "This kid is Itachi's brother, remember that. Don't take him lightly, and if you know you can't win there's no shame in giving up. Naruto and Neji already passed so we're here for another month at least."

"Please, I'm not gonna just step aside and let those two go to the third stage by themselves!" Kiba looked directly at Naruto and Neji. "I'll see you guys in a bit." Kiba grinned before vaulting over the rails and onto the ground.

Sasuke huffed as he turned to move, but was stopped by Kakashi. Sasuke turned to his sensei with an impatient look in his eye. "Both of your teammates didn't make it past this stage. You're the last one who can make it."

"You're worried I can't beat some nobody," Sasuke questioned.

"Hinata couldn't. This kid is on the same team as the guy who beat her." Kakashi's eyes hardened, glaring straight into Sasuke's eyes. "Make him bleed."

"You got it," Sasuke replied.

Kiba stood with a grin, across from Sasuke who looked rather annoyed. As soon as the match began, Kiba threw a fist at his opponent. Sasuke effortlessly seized Kiba's wrist before throwing him over his shoulders. Kiba spun around and landed on all fours, facing Sasuke. Before the young Uchiha could turn around, Kiba hurled a handful of smoke bombs forward that exploded at his opponent's feet. The raven haired boy huffed before making a series of hand signs. Kiba rushed towards the cloud of smoke. A series of tiny fireballs broke through the smoke. Kiba quickly shot into the air, intending to strike from above. To his surprise, Sasuke broke through the smoke and smashed the bottom of his foot against Kiba's face. Kiba was thrown further into the air, but was pulled back down by his ankle. Sasuke screamed as he hurled Kiba to the floor with all his might. The young Inuzuka was thrown head over heels before he smacked into the ground. Sasuke spun around as he fell towards Kiba. As the young Inuzuka opened his eyes, Sasuke slammed his heel down on Kiba's stomach. The brunette screamed in agony as a mouthful of blood flew out of his mouth. Sasuke rolled backwards onto his feet before he jumped on Kiba and started punching him over and over in the face.

"Damn it," Yahiko murmured, clenching the rails tightly.

"Be cautious my friend," Guy spoke. Yahiko shifted his eyes over to the Jonin standing next to him. "If you interfere during a match then your entire time could be disqualified. The only exceptions are if the match is over and the victor keeps attacking his opponent." Yahiko scowled as he watched Kiba get pounded mercilessly.

The young Inuzuka growled before he caught Sasuke's fist and threw him off. The young Uchiha rolled over on his feet, standing in a crouched position as Kiba quickly faced off against him. Sasuke stared at Kiba who snarled before crouching down. In one swift movement, Kiba pulled out a scroll and started spinning around wildly, causing kunai, shuriken, and any other bladed weapon that could be thrown, to fly towards Sasuke. The young Uchiha had his eyes closed and waited until the last second to spring up into the air. Sasuke spun around, making the last of a series of hand signs faster than Kiba could even see. The raven haired boy roared with anger as a massive fireball was launched from his mouth. Kiba's eyes widened before he dove to the side as the fireball exploded behind him.

As the brunette slowly rose to his feet, but in the blink of an eye he was punched in the stomach by Sasuke. Kiba stumbled back before returning a punch, which Sasuke easily caught. The young Uchiha pulled Kiba forward, glaring angrily into his opponent's eyes. Kiba's eyes shot open in alarm as he realized Sasuke had his Sharingan activated. The raven haired boy threw his leg up, connecting with Kiba's face. The spiky haired boy stumbled backwards, holding his face in pain. Sasuke walked towards Kiba who quickly spun around, readying himself. The Uchiha huffed before he vanished in the blink of an eye. Kiba gasped before shifting his eyes around to try and find him. Finally catching his scent, Kiba spun around to knock Sasuke's block off. Unfortunately, the raven haired boy was a step ahead of Kiba and had ducked down. Sasuke quickly punched Kiba just below his ribcage, and then again in the side of the head. Kiba spun around in place before trying to strike Sasuke. The boy ducked then punched Kiba twice in the gut. The spiky haired Genin coughed as he doubled over. Sasuke placed his hands on Kiba's back then thrusted his knee into his opponent's stomach. Kiba coughed again, a bit of blood flying from his mouth. Sasuke screamed loudly as he lifted Kiba high off the ground, above his head. Kiba was thrown over Sasuke and slammed on his front into the ground. As the spiky haired boy rebounded off the ground, Sasuke kicked him in the face, sending Kiba rolling head over heels backwards.

Naruto and Neji scowled angrily from the stands, having to watch their best friend being brutally beaten. "Stop the match," Naruto shouted.

"Your friend has to either be knocked unconscious or give up," Hayate replied, not taking his eyes off Sasuke or Kiba. Naruto growled, his anger rising as he watched the sight.

Danzo had a wrinkled smirk on his face, pleased with Sasuke's talent and ruthlessness. So far the last Uchiha was being molded just as Danzo had planned. Once the training for the third stage started, Danzo would order Kakashi to teach Sasuke _that_ technique.

Tobi looked rather bored, leaning against the back wall while watching the fight. Despite his body language, Tobi was rather intrigued with how brutal the young Sasuke was. Perhaps Tobi could use the boy's darkness to his advantage.

Kiba was thrown back, landing on his face. The boy panted heavily as he tried to push himself up, but his arms were too weak. Sasuke stomped his foot on Kiba's back, smashing the boy back into the ground. The young Uchiha started twisting and grinding his foot into Kiba's back, causing him to groan and cry out in pain.

"You honestly think you could stand against me? I'm Sasuke Uchiha, the last surviving member of the Uchiha Clan. Scum like you can't stand against me." Kiba groaned, trying to force himself up, only to be pushed down by Sasuke again. "Let me make this message a little clearer for you." Sasuke used his foot to roll Kiba on his back, before he bent over and started punching the boy in the face.

Naruto's rage built up so much that his darkened whisker marks started to bleed through the special make-up Tsunade made for him. Neji saw the demon chakra in Naruto rising. Yahiko noticed this too, mentally cursing himself with no options left.

"He forfeits," Yahiko shouted. "Call the match!"

"He has to forfeit," Hayate replied, glancing up at the orange haired ninja. "His sensei cannot call the match for him."

"Damn it, give up now!" Kiba opened his mouth to speak, but Sasuke pushed the boy's head into the ground.

"Call the match Fang," Neji shouted.

"THAT'S IT!" Naruto sprung over the railings and shot forward, alarming everyone watching the match.

Sasuke turned his head with shock just before Naruto slammed his shoulder into the boy's back. Sasuke cried out as he was thrown off Kiba along with Naruto. The blonde was on top of Sasuke, fist raised and ready to strike. Suddenly, Naruto felt a strong hand wrap around his wrist and one on his shoulder. Kakashi planted his feet on the ground before hurling the boy towards the wall. Yahiko jumped down just in time to catch the boy. The rate in which Naruto was going caused Yahiko to slide back a bit before coming to a stop.

"Enough," Danzo spoke with a loud, echoing voice. All eyes moved up to the Hokage who looked down at floor. "The match is over. Sasuke Uchiha is the victory." A group of medical ninjas then ran onto the scene to help Kiba. "Start the next match Hayate."

"What," Sasuke growled in outrage.

"Lord Hokage, that brat interrupted the match," Kakashi stated. "He should be disqualified!"

"That jackass over there wouldn't give my friend a chance to forfeit," Naruto screamed, pointing an angry finger at Sasuke. "He should be disqualified!"

"No one is disqualified," Danzo snapped. "The only way one of them may be disqualified is if a sensei interrupts the match. In this case, the young Ryu interrupted the match and attacked Sasuke. The match was now against these two, so when Kakashi intervened, he was not breaking any rules. Both Ryu and Sasuke will go onto the third stage. No exceptions. Now clear the way for the next combatants." Kakashi and Sasuke walked off, glaring at Naruto and Yahiko who followed Kiba, along with Neji, and the other medic ninjas.

"Curious," Orochimaru hummed. "If it were anyone else who dared to harm your precious Sasuke, you would've had them disqualified and possible killed on the spot." The Sannin looked over at Danzo who remained silent. "Could it be you're interested to find out it this boy is in fact the long lost child of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki?" Again, Danzo remained silent. Orochimaru chuckled deviously before turning to the screen.

"Rock Lee and Gaara, come down here please."

"YES! Finally it's your turn Lee!"

"Yes, Guy sensei I promise I will do my best!" Guy laughed before ginning as widely as he could.

"Knock em dead kid!"

"I will not stop until my opponent has stopped breathing sensei! I promise I will incinerate my opponent with the flames of youth!" Lee shot over the rails and landed in front of Gaara who looked at him with annoyance. "Prepare yourself my opponent, I will show no mercy!"

"How long you think he'll last," Zaku asked, resting his chin on his arms.

"With those weights," Dosu questioned. "Five seconds. HEY GAARA! YOU SUCK!" Dosu turned to Zaku, "Now two seconds." Sakura looked to the exit worryingly before she glanced back at her teammates. After a brief moment, she decided to sneak out quickly before the match started.

Kiba cringed with pain as a medic placed a cloth on a discolored circle on the side of his head. "Are you alright," Yahiko asked.

"I just got the living snot kicked out of me," Kiba groaned, opening one eye to glare at the orange haired man. "What the hell do you think?"

"He's fine," Neji sighed. Yahiko gave the 'blind' Genin a quizzical look. "If he's making smart ass remarks then he's fine."

"He's got a few broken ribs and a massive amount of bruises and some internal bleeding," one of the medics stated.

"You couldn't tell my ass was kicked," Kiba asked in fury. "You need a prognosis to know my ass was handed to me!"

"Don't mind him," Naruto murmured before looking up at the doctor. "Can you heal him?"

"There's not much we can do for him here," the medic replied. "All of our healers are busy attending to Miss Hinata, and they left to ensure she made it to hospital. I would guess that they should be back in an hour."

"A FREAKING HOUR?" Kiba groaned then leaned back, holding his ribs in pain.

"You stupid idiot, just lie down and stop bitching," Yahiko hissed. "Do you have any pain pills, or should I just bang his head against the ground until he's unconscious?" The medics all looked at each other frightfully, wondering if Yahiko was serious.

"Maybe I can help…" All the heads snapped around, seeing Sakura standing in the doorway. "I know a little medical ninjutsu, maybe I could help to stop the pain."

"Please do so," Neji said. "I can't take much more of his whining."

"My WHINING! I just got the living crap beaten out of me!"

"And saying it over and over isn't going to help either," Neji sniped back. "You lost, get over it."

Sakura walked forward and knelt down next to Naruto and Neji. She closed her eyes and sighed softly as she concentrated her chakra. The kunoichi's hands began to glow a light green. She placed her hands on Kiba's ribs, allowing her chakra to flow in the boy's body. The brunette cringed, moaning quietly in pain. After a few seconds, Sakura opened her eyes and sighed softly before pulling her hands away carefully.

"How's that?"

"Better than before," Kiba replied. The Inuzuka smiled as best as he could, "Thanks Ryu's girlfriend." Sakura and Naruto both blushed, the latter glaring at his injured teammate.

"Her name is Sakura," Naruto replied.

"I know, it's just fun to annoy you." Naruto's eye twitched with aggravation before turning his head away with a huff.

"You're lucky you're in pain, otherwise I'd beat the crap out of you…"

"Please don't," Neji hastily snapped. "Otherwise he'll keep whining like an injured mutt." Naruto smirked while Kiba shot a fierce look at Neji.

"And I thought I was just my team that liked to tease each other," Sakura muttered.

"Not, it's pretty much any group of immature children." Now the three Genin glared at Yahiko, who simply rolled his eyes. Suddenly, the entire tower shook violently.

"What in the world was that," Neji questioned over the booming echo.

The tower shook again, just as ferociously as before. Suddenly, entire wall behind Naruto, Neji, and Sakura exploded outward. Dust and debris was thrown everywhere, causing the shinobi and medics to shield themselves. Everything settled, revealing a battered and bleeding Rock Lee lying amongst the rubble and dirt.

"Lee," Sakura shouted.

Inside the arena, Gaara stood, panting heavily with his sand armor cracked all over his body. Craters littered the ground around him, and the entire room seemed to be falling apart. "Now…it's over…"

"Th-the winner is Gaara," Hayate announced.

Orochimaru shifted his eyes to where Lee lied as Guy quickly darted towards his student. "Such power and ferocity in that battle…to think Guy would push his favorite student that far…"

"Might Guy's first loyalty is to the village. For that, he'd teach a hundred children how to open the Eight Gates if I so ordered it…" Orochimaru moved his eyes to Danzo.

"_Did_ you order Guy to teach the boy that technique?" Danzo remained silent before he turned back to Hayate on the ground.

"Will the last two contestants please step forward?"

"YAY! It's finally Tobi's turn!" The masked man quickly dove over the railings and rolled across the ground. A boy with white hair and purple eyes made his way down and stood across from Tobi.

"Suigetsu Hozuki and Tobi, prepare for the final battle of the preliminaries."

"Lee," Guy called out before sliding forward on his knees. "Lee, speak to me!" The medics and Sakura quickly rushed over to Lee and started tending to him.

"What the hell happened out there," Yahiko questioned, looking through the now massive hole leading to the arena.

"Lee…he opened the Eight Chakra Gates," Guy stated. The four rogues' jaws dropped in unison, gapping with awe and shock. "His opponent was the Jinchuriki of Sunagakure: Gaara of the Desert." Naruto blinked with shock, closing his mouth. "He managed to get by Gaara's ultimate defense, but then he went berserk and partially transformed into his demonic form. Something about not taking any more chances against Konoha shinobi…" Sakura lowered her head slightly, feeling a pang of guilt for Lee's current condition. "And then Lee opened five of the Eight Gates, and a ferocious battle ensued, but Gaara won in the end…"

"Th-that boy can open the Eight Gates," Yahiko questioned. Guy nodded, not taking his eyes off Lee. "W-why in the world would you teach a Genin such a dangerous technique?"

"Lee can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu, only taijutsu. To make up for his loss of talent, and to make him a formidable ninja for his village, I had to teach him this. I'm still so proud of him though. To be able to fight toe-to-toe with a Jinchuriki is no small feat. He truly is a skilled shinobi to have gotten this far." Lee groaned before he groggily opened his eyes.

"Guy sensei…?"

"I'm here Lee," the Jonin spoke, stepping into the line of sight.

"Did…did I win Guy sensei…?"

"No Lee, but your youth has never burned brighter!" Guy grinned, a bright sparkle coming off his teeth. "I'm so proud of you!" Lee sniffled before tears started pouring down his face.

"G-Guy sensei!"

"Lee!" Guy started crying as well before he fell to his knees and hugged Lee tightly. Sakura gave a questioning look before stepping back from the two bowl-cut shinobi. She looked over her shoulder at Yahiko and his students before giving an uneasy shrug.

"Will all the participants heading to the third stage please come back inside," Hayate's voice called out.

Naruto, Sakura, and Neji looked back into the arena, shocked to see that the final match was already over. A group of medics in black quickly rushed inside and took Suigetsu's lifeless body out while the winners lined up. Danzo, Orochimaru, Hayate, and the ANBU captain stood before the Genin while the Jonin stood behind them.

"You all have made it to the third stage," Danzo stated, "Congratulations. Now, Hayate has a box. Inside the box are a group of balls with a designated number on them. These numbers will determine what match you'll be set in. Since there is an odd number of participants, one of you will get a free ride to the second round of the third stage. Now, when we call your name, step forward and take a number."

"Sasuke Uchiha," Hayate spoke. The young Uchiha walked forward and reached inside the box. He grabbed the first ball he touched then pulled it out and showed it for everyone to see. "Sasuke Uchiha, number 2." Orochimaru wrote the number down on a clipboard before nodding to Hayate. "Shikamaru Nara." The lazy genius stepped forward, pulling one of his hands out of his pockets as he reached inside. Like Sasuke, he just pulled out the first ball he touched. "Shikamaru Nara, number 3." Orochimaru scribbled the name down. "Zaku Abumi." The black haired boy showed his number to Hayate. "Zaku Abumi, number 6. Tobi, step forward." The masked man skipped forward and reached inside, digging around for a few seconds before pulling out a random ball. "Tobi, number 9."

"YAY! Tobi gets to pass round one! I rock, you all suck!"

"Dosu Kinuta." The hunched over Genin dug around the box before pulling out a number. "Dosu Kinuta, number 8."

'_That's just my luck,'_ Dosu thought grimly.

"Hizashi." Neji walked forward and reached inside. After a few short seconds, he pulled out a number then showed it to Hayate. "Hizashi, your number is number 1." Neji's eyes narrowed under his headband. Sasuke huffed with his arms crossed over his chest, staring at the blind Genin.

"I'm sensing animosity," Zaku whispered sarcastically to Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi rolled her eyes.

"Gaara of the Desert." The Jinchuriki stepped forward, reached in, and pulled out a number. "Gaara, number 7." Zaku and Sakura's eyes shot open with alarm before turning to Dosu, who was slouching lower than usual, his single eye ready to pop out of his head.

"FUCK," Dosu shouted, throwing his head back.

"Sakura Haruno." The pink haired kunoichi sighed as she walked forward and pulled out a number. "Sakura Haruno, number 4. That leaves Ryu with number 5." Orochimaru finished scribbling on his clipboard before holding it out to the Genin. "These are the matches that you'll each be fighting in, and in what order."

The first match was Sasuke vs. Neji, second match Shikamaru vs. Sakura, third match Naruto vs. Zaku, fourth and final match Gaara vs. Dosu, while Tobi got a free ride to the second round.

"These matches are final," Danzo spoke. "You all will have a month to train and better prepare yourselves for your matches. You are not required to use this time to train, but it is highly recommended that you do. With that said, you all are dismissed. In one month's time, you're to come to the Chunin Exam Arena on the south side of the village. If you do not know where that is, I suggest you or your sensei find out quickly." Danzo nodded to the Genin and turned and walked away.

Sasuke turned and walked towards Kakashi who stared at him with cold, expectant eyes. They were the first ones to leave after Danzo and his escorts. Shikamaru sighed before walking over to where Guy and an injured Rock Lee were. Gaara shifted his eyes to Dosu before walking to the exit as well with his sensei and siblings following behind him.

"I can't believe this," Dosu murmured. "Of all the opponents in the world…why him? I hardly even touched him during the second stage! Why can't he fight you!" Zaku looked at Dosu's finger pointed at him before he shrugged.

"Maybe fate wants me to beat up Sakura's boyfriend." Said kunoichi screamed as she threw her fist at Zaku's head. The young Genin was a second quicker, successfully ducking under his teammate's strike.

"This isn't even fair…"

"Hey, I've gotta take on Konoha's smartest ninja," Sakura muttered spitefully. "How do you think I feel?"

"I HAVE TO TAKE ON A CRAZY JINCHURIKI!"

Naruto looked to Neji, who seemed to be deep in thought. After a second, the blonde finally spoke, "What're you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna do what you'd expect Kiba to do," Neji replied. "Sasuke Uchiha is going to try to beat me to avenge Hinata, and I'm planning on doing the same for our comrade. The difference being…I intend to be the victor." Naruto smirked before turning to Yahiko. Their sensei pulled his head towards the exit. Naruto nodded then pulled Neji along towards the exit.

* * *

Around nightfall, the Genin moving on to the third stage had made it back to the village. Zaku and a now calmed Dosu escorted Sakura back home once they got to the village. Sakura walked up to the front door and turned around, waving goodbye to her teammates.

"Tomorrow," Zaku snapped, "Lunch, courtesy of Anko sensei!"

"I'll be there," Sakura replied. "See you guys tomorrow." The boys waved before walking down the street. Sakura opened the door and entered the house quietly. To her surprise, her uncle was lying on the couch, reading a book by candlelight.

"Hey there," Higure greeted.

"Hi," Sakura replied. "Why is it so dark?" Higure shrugged as he shut his book and threw his legs off the couch. He looked at his niece for a moment, examining her curiously. "What…?"

"You REALLY need a shower." Sakura scowled angrily, a small blush forming across her face. "Hey, you've been in the forest for god knows how many days. I don't blame you for needing a shower."

"I'll take one in the morning," Sakura murmured. "I'm beat."

"So I take it you're moving on to the third stage?" Sakura nodded, yawning as she sat down on the opposite end of the couch from her uncle. "But, since you're here so late I'm assuming that you had a little preliminaries match?"

"How'd you know," Sakura asked.

"Your mother had to go through the preliminaries when she took the Chunin Exams."

"Weren't you two in the same squad…?"

"Well…yeah, but I was still older than her. My sensei put your father and I together in the Chunin Exams first. Unfortunately, your father held me back in the first stage. Couldn't pass a written test to save his life…" Sakura smiled before leaning back on the couch. "At least at first. The second time around he passed with flying colors."

"Well Zaku thought he was gonna fail, but Ryu, out of nowhere gave this random outburst of a speech and somehow convinced the proctor to let us all pass. And then in the second stage, we found this clearing and had the idea of just staying in the same area and set up traps so when someone stumbles across us we could spring the traps and get a scroll no problem. And then, of all the people to stumble across us, it was Hinata and her team."

"I'm assuming you let loose with all the traps right?" Sakura smiled then shook her head, trying to fight a yawn that escaped from her mouth.

"It was a good thing we didn't either, because then the Jinchuriki, Gaara of the Desert showed up, and we were all forced to work together to survive."

"The Land of Wind's Jinchuriki…wow, you had your first run in with a Jinchuriki and you're still alive."

"Yeah, but god it was crazy. He would stay down. We dropped trees on him, blew him up, and he just kept coming! But finally Shino used his bugs to paralyze him, we took the team's scroll and made a break for it. Well…Hinata's team got the scroll, but we just wanted to get the hell out of there. And then we started the preliminaries a few days after that. Dosu got the first matchup against Choji and beat him in no time flat. Zaku fought Shino, and he used the Hokage as a line of defense." Higure's brow rose with curiosity. "But he ended up winning using a poison we got from the Forest of Death. And then I had to fight some puppet user and beat him with a quick genjutsu. Now in the third stage, I've gotta fight Shikamaru, Zaku's gotta fight Ryu, and Dosu has to fight Gaara."

"Sucks to be him." Sakura nodded, his eyes drooping from exhaustion. Higure looked over, seeing his niece's head bobbing back and forth heavily before she finally fell back, letting darkness embrace her. The older man sighed before he stood up and moved towards Sakura. He lifted her up and carried her upstairs and into her bed. He lied Sakura down in her bed, pulled the covers over her body, and then left her room quietly.

Outside of the Haruno household, a cloaked figure stared intently at the home in front of him with a curious Sharingan. _'The little shrew…with her around, manipulating Naruto will be difficult.'_ Tobi lowered his head, keeping his eye on the house before him.

"What're you thinking Tobi," a figure asked as it emerged from the ground. The being known as Zetsu showed itself, staring at his master curiously. "Are we going to take out the little pink haired girl? She's just going to make our job of using Naruto that much more difficult."

"I know…but now wouldn't be the proper time for a reunion."

"A reunion," Zetsu repeated with curiosity. "I thought you hadn't interacted with the girl yet."

The mysterious Tobi turned around, looking back over his shoulder. "Maybe another time," he spoke, seemingly ignoring Zetsu. "The opportunity to deal with Sakura Haruno will present itself another time. Until then, we'll take our time."

"Of course," Zetsu murmured. The plant creature merged back into the ground as Tobi turned his head forward and leapt off into the night.

**

* * *

So…I apologize for two things: One I apologize for not getting this up sooner (like around the weekend when I said it would). My inspiration just suddenly vanished about halfway through this chapter. Two, I apologize for Gaara and Lee's fight happening off screen, but I didn't feel like recreating a fight from the canon that would've had the same result. Also Lee didn't get his arm and leg crushed, so he's not going to be a cripple, again like the canon.**

**With that said: please R&R, gracias.**


	14. Prelude to the Third Stage

Zabuza walked out of the medical wing, rubbing his neck. Shizune walked out, her hands clasped gently in front of her. "Well…I think I got everything out of the wound. I still don't think you should be moving quite yet." Zabuza quickly jerked his head to the side, causing a loud, snapping noise to be heard. Shizune yelped, staring with wide, horrified eyes. The mist ninja moaned quietly as he rolled his arm around.

"That's better," Zabuza replied. "Thank you Shizune-san."

"I-it's fine, but if it messed up later don't come crying to me!" Zabuza chuckled before he turned and walked away. Shizune shook her head as she watched the man walk, "I swear…why he even bothers coming to me if he's just going to pop everything back into place is beyond me."

Zabuza groaned, rubbing the burning cut on his shoulder. "Zabuza-san," a voice called out. The masked shinobi turned his head, seeing Itachi approaching him. "How's your injury?"

"It's doin fine kid. I don't know why I still don't expect the worse from you." Itachi chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck bashfully.

"Still, I apologize for our last sparring session…" Zabuza patted Itachi on the back as they walked. Suddenly, Haku and Ranmaru came darting down the hallway in front of Zabuza and Itachi, laughing to each other as an angry Ino came chasing after them, makeup smeared all over her face. Itachi and Zabuza watched the children running away before looking at each other. Itachi chuckled while Zabuza simply shook his head and continued onward. "I thought with Naruto and Kiba gone that there would be less pranks and a bit more peace and quiet around here."

"Well, after lady Tsunade fixed that Ranmaru's crippled body and he could run around, he was more than eager to…well, run."

"A _lot_ of running…" Itachi looked down a hallway, seeing a figure out of the corner of his eye. The young Uchiha stopped, rubbing the back of his neck, clearing his throat audibly. Zabuza stopped and turned around, quizzically staring at Itachi. "Um…well I've got a uh…thing…to take care of." Zabuza narrowed his eyes skeptically. Itachi cleared his throat again, giving a quick, bat of the eye, glance to the side. Zabuza looked in the direction Itachi glanced in before looking back at the young Uchiha, a sly smile under his mask.

"Oh, I get it." Zabuza winked before turning his back to Itachi. "Heaven forbid you spend some time with me. I guess I'll just go find some woodland creatures to kill in my spare time." Zabuza looked back over his shoulder and Itachi was, very expectantly, already gone. The swordsmen chuckled, shaking his head as he continued down the hall.

Hana walked casually down the halls of the hideout, before she yelped with shock as someone grabbed her waist. She looked to her right, seeing Itachi resting his head on her shoulder. Hana blushed, unable to fight the grin that formed on her face as Itachi kissed her on the cheek.

"Hey there."

"Hey yourself Uchiha," Hana replied, removing Itachi's arms from around her waist. "What's gotten into you?"

"What, I can't show affection anymore," Itachi questioned, taking a step back as Hana spun around.

"You never have before. Why now?"

"Because we don't have to worry about upsetting your brother for another week."

"Yeah," Hana murmured as she crossed her arms. Itachi studied the girl's face for a long moment.

"Uh oh…you're thinking. That thinking face never means anything good for me." Hana smirked, her eyes meeting with Itachi's.

"I think we should tell my brother about our relationship." Itachi's shoulders slumped as he groaned in protest. "Oh come on, he already hates you for the 'rumor' that we're going out. After this month and a half together…I'm pretty sure every knows it's _not_ a rumor." Itachi sighed running a hand through his hair before scratching the top of his head. "He's going to find out anyway. At least this way we won't have to hide all the time. Besides, I like this Itachi."

"Wait, there's another Itachi?"

"Yeah," Hana exclaimed, placing a hand on her hip while poking Itachi's chest with a forceful finger. "The Itachi who never interacts with me unless we're alone and hardly ever shows any true form of affection unless my brother is gone for a month!" Hana leaned back, her frown turning into a warm smile. "I like this sweet Itachi who isn't afraid to piss off a crazy serial killer to spend time with me."

Itachi rubbed the back of his next, chuckling nervously. "Zabuza-san isn't _that_ bad. He's just a misunderstood individual…with a really big sword that likes to kill." Hana raised a questioning brow, doing her best to fighting the smirk on her face. Itachi looked at Hana, a wide smile crossing his face before laughing lightheartedly.

* * *

In Konoha, Neji and Naruto were sparring furiously on the training grounds with Yahiko watching intently. "Faster! Strike harder!"

Naruto cried out angrily, throwing a punch which barely missed Neji. The young Hyuga placed his feet on the ground then threw his legs up in an arc. Naruto jerked his head back, jumping a few feet away as he slid across the ground. Neji moved forward and struck at the blonde who ducked between Neji's arms. Naruto thrusted his fists forward, striking Neji in the chest. The brunette grunted as he spun backwards before coming to a stop.

"Alright, that's enough for today," Yahiko stated. The two Genin sighed heavily as they lowered their arms to their sides. "Good work guys. You've definitely improved during these past couple of weeks."

"Yeah, but look at the competition," Naruto murmured as he rubbed his neck with a towel. "We've got an Uchiha, and a Jinchuriki…which is kinda ironic seeing as how I'm a Jinchuriki and we got ourselves a Hyuga here."

"Hilarious," Neji replied with a droll tone.

"Yeah…seeing as how the competition was stacked against me anyway I'm kinda glad I threw my match against Sasuke," Kiba muttered from the ground.

"Please," Naruto shouted, looking at the sky gazing Inuzuka. "You didn't throw anything! He just beat the crap out of you fair and square!"

"Well you're lucky Neji'll knock him out of the first round before he gets a chance to fight you."

"Yeah, but instead I'll either have to fight a Jinchuriki, or Sakura's teammate whose jutsu works whether or not he hits you. Seriously, he just has to swing his arm and then BAM game over!"

"Yeah, _that's_ what you're worried about," Kiba muttered smugly. "You're totally not worried about fighting one of Sakura's friends and possibly beating the crap out of him."

"You make it sound like Dosu might win." Kiba shrugged, looking over to Neji. "Hey, I hope he does. He's a pretty cool guy." The spiky haired rogues all snapped their heads towards Neji. "What? The team invited me to lunch one day."

"Wh-why did Sakura-chan invite you to lunch and not me," Naruto questioned.

"It was your day to train with Yahiko sensei," Neji replied casually. "They wanted to congratulate me for beating Hinata in the preliminaries. They're actually really funny. Sakura is too. She's really flirty. I mean she just wouldn't stop hitting on me. And I couldn't get her to stop either. She just kept going and going and-,"

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Naruto lunged at Neji. The rogue Hyuga laughed as he ducked and rolled Naruto over his shoulders onto the ground. The blonde landed hard on his back, glaring up at Neji.

"I was joking," Neji stated with a smile on his face. "She's fun, but her friends are a hell of a lot funner."

"So…she didn't flirt with you…?"

"Nope. Not even once. Except when she told me about how she's so happy I beat Hinata."

"How _did_ you beat her exactly," Kiba asked. "You punched her, but her heart failed as if you used the Gentle Fist. Unless it became an actual fist and not an open palm then-,"

"I just got lucky I guess," Neji replied swiftly. "Don't worry about it. Besides, it's been the better half of a month. I'm sure a blind kid beating the Hyuga Clan's heiress is old news by now."

* * *

Hinata cried out with rage as she spun around and tore through a log with a forceful chop. The top of the training log hit the ground with a heavy thud. The Hyuga heiress panted heavily, sweat pouring down her face.

"Excellent strike Miss Hinata," a small voice spoke. Hinata huffed then turned around, facing a small little girl with long brown hair, wide eyes, and a curse marking on her forehead. The little girl held out a towel, which her older sister snatched angrily from her hands. "What's troubling you sister?"

"The fact I _lost_ against some blind kid!"

"The Chunin Exams are held twice every year. I'm sure you'll have another opportunity to be promoted to the rank of Chunin next time."

"But I was robbed! That kid used the Gentle Fist against me! I saw it!" Hanabi blinked with confusion, mentally wondering what her sister was thinking. "He's a Hyuga clansman in disguise! I know it!"

"My lady…the only person who has escaped the Hyuga Clan would be our cousin: Neji Hyuga, but he ran away after the death of his father. He was officially reported that he was killed on sight."

"That's what we say to make sure word didn't get out that a Hyuga member managed to get away. Officially we don't know if Neji died or not. But I know for a FACT that that blind kid, Hizashi, is Neji!" Hanabi lowered her eyes to the ground before looking back up at her sister. Hinata scowled, dropping the towel back in Hanabi's hands.

"Um…Miss Hinata…" The Hyuga heiress looked down at her sister with an annoyed look. "Might I have the rest of the day off please…?" Hinata sighed, a small smile coming across her face.

"Oh why not. You've been working so hard for the past few months. I suppose you've earned a day off."

"Thank you very much Miss Hinata," Hanabi replied with a bow.

"Just be home before dark. Father is caught up in meetings all day, and he's going to want a good meal cooked for him."

"Of course Miss Hinata…" Hanabi stopped to bow to her sister again before walking off. Hinata huffed as her little sister walked away. The heiress walked the opposite direction towards the Hyuga Compound.

* * *

Dosu and Sakura walked onto the training grounds, staring up in a tree. Zaku was standing on a tree branch, upside down with his eyes closed. Dosu looked at Sakura, who immediately shrugged with confusion. Dosu knelt down and picked up a rock before throwing it at his teammate. Zaku pulled his body up to his feet as the rock flew by. Sakura and Dosu's eyes widened with shock as Zaku's eyes were still closed before he peeked one open.

"What's up," Zaku greeted.

"What the hell are you doing," Sakura questioned.

"And how the hell did you dodge that rock," Dosu asked.

"I'm training my mind." Zaku pulled his upper body forward, grabbing the tree branch. His legs fell from the branch and dangled loosely for a moment before Zaku dropped to the ground. "I heard that it's a good way to sharpen your mind and trust your senses."

"Who the hell told you that load of crap," Sakura asked.

"Your uncle." Sakura blinked with shock while Dosu looked over at her, snickering quietly. "At first I thought he was just saying it to get me out of his house, but it really works!"

"Why isn't he suggesting this crap for me? I'm the one who's taking on the village's smartest lazy guy!"

"You've been with Rin-chan learning medical ninjutsu," Zaku said with a shrug. "And Anko sensei was teaching Dosu the best survival techniques when the odds are stacked against you. And let's face it: the odds are REALLY stacked against you."

"Thanks man," Dosu sniped sarcastically.

"The way I see it I got easy compared to you guys. But I gotta make it look good for the judges so that I can forfeit if things get too dicey against Gaara."

"You don't think I could beat him? It takes just one swing of this arm and I'll have him on the ground."

"And then he'll throw up the sand and crush you into paste," Zaku replied.

"Besides, you already used that technique. Gaara might just put sand in his ears, and if he has that sand armor then you can't fluctuate the sound waves through his body." Dosu's arms fell lower, his knuckles almost hitting the ground.

"Shit…"

"Way to spend these past few weeks man," Zaku jokingly boasted.

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

Sakura groaned as she slouched down as low as Dosu, "Oh lord…" Rock Lee flipped over Sakura and Dosu, landing in front of Zaku on one knee with his hand extended towards the pink haired kunoichi.

"Sakura-chan, please go on a date with me!"

"Lee, this is my break between training with Uncle, and then I have to go meet Miss Rin over at the hospital immediately after that."

"Hey, Bushy Brows," Dosu spoke. "Can you do me a HUGE favor?"

"For Sakura-chan's teammate I will do anything!"

'_Poor boy,'_ Dosu thought quickly. "You managed to get past Gaara's defenses with that crazy speed you had, even before you opened the chakra gates. Do you think you could help me get that fast in a week?"

"I am afraid I cannot Dosu," Lee replied quietly. "My body has not yet completely healed from overexertion." Dosu groaned, his head falling downward while Zaku chuckled.

"I bet you could probably forfeit now and you won't have to fight him," the spiky haired shinobi joked.

"Dosu, if you truly wish to learn how to obtain the same level of speed that I have before the Chunin Exams, I have a suggestion." Dosu's head snapped up, gazing Lee curiously. "I could request that Guy sensei teach you that technique. He was the one who originally taught it to me, and I am sure that he would not mind teaching you."

"If it helps me survive my match I'll do just about anything."

"Excellent! I will ask him immediately…if Sakura-chan promises to go on one date with me." The kunoichi groaned then slouched down further than her masked teammate. Dosu looked at his teammate pleadingly. Sakura looked at Dosu, then up at the hopeful looking Lee.

"One date," Sakura muttered.

"YES," Dosu exclaimed.

"YAHOO!" Lee sprung into the air, flipping around backwards. "I WILL GO TELL GUY SENSEI AT ONCE!" With that said, the boy in green shot past the three Genin.

"I thought he said his body wasn't completely healed yet," Zaku stated. The boy turned to Sakura with a smirk on his face. "I think Rock Lee just played you both." Dosu's single eye was wide with shock, staring at the tiny dot that was now Lee before shifting over to Sakura. The kunoichi was practically seething with rage as she slowly turned her head to Dosu.

"Please don't kill me…" Sakura quickly grabbed Dosu by the collar and lifted him off the ground, glaring daggers at him.

"You just remember I did this for you. I don't know how, but damn it you're going to make this up to me!"

"Well first we need to make sure I don't die before I can start repaying you."

"HA-HA!" The kids jumped once something dropped from the sky and smashed into the ground, forming a massive crater in front of them. The dust cleared, revealing Might Guy grinning at Dosu. "My boy, Lee tells me you're seeking the flames of youth!"

"Actually I'm seeking super speed to get past Gaara's sand defense."

"To do so, you must first embrace the FLAMES OF YOUTH!" Dosu looked up at Guy's cheesy grin, not even directed at him no less.

"Fine…I'll embrace the flames of youth…"

"THAT'S WHAT I LIKE TO HEAR!" Guy threw his fists into the air and screamed as fire erupted around his body.

"Dosu…if you train with Guy, does that mean you'll be wearing those tight jumpsuits?"

"Not in this lifetime."

"Come Dosu, if you're to learn from me we have to start training IMMEDIATELY!" Guy grabbed Dosu's arm then shot off into the horizon, with the latter screaming for his life. Sakura and Zaku looked at each other before shaking their heads and looking back to Dosu.

"Lunch," Zaku asked.

"Is that all we ever do anymore? Just meet up and eat?"

"Answer the damn question." Sakura rolled her eyes then motioned for Zaku to lead the way.

* * *

Danzo sighed as he placed the last of the documents on his desk to the side. There was a knock on the door before the person let themselves in. Orochimaru was sneering as usual upon entering. "How are the preparations in the Land of Waves?"

"Very good," Orochimaru replied. "Sasori is planning on arriving to Konoha in four days, and Hanzo will be here a day before that."

"Onoki?"

"Being the stubborn old fool he is and not showing up. Apparently there's a rambunctious rogue that is a top priority for him. After all, there are no shinobi from his village that is in the third stage correct?" Danzo hummed lowly before nodding. "Besides, there's someone even more important showing up to the third stage…" Danzo's single eye moved its way up, staring straight through Orochimaru. The sinister Sannin sneered, "Apparently that Tobi fellow is from the Land of Water. Yagura is showing up to watch him in the third stage. I'm sure you could find the time to talk alliances could you not?" For the first time since Orochimaru could remember, Danzo smiled.

"Excellent Orochimaru, excellent." The Hokage stood up suddenly then walked to the window, staring over his vast, powerful village. "If we can ally ourselves with the Land of Water…you realize what this could mean? Four of the five major nations would be united."

"Yes, but I'm sure the last one wouldn't join us, even against such odds." Orochimaru smiled, knowing how the old man would play this out.

"If they refuse me, then I will bring my armies and the armies of my allies down upon them! Our numbers will fill their entire nation! The citizens of the Land of Lightning will be butchered in their homes, bodies piled up in the streets, being burned into ash! We will sweep across the Land of Lightning, killing and slaughtering all. And if the Raikage must die, then I will murder him in front of his shinobi, his people, and his soldiers. I will break their backs, their spirits, I will make sure that the people of the Land of Lightning get a taste of hell before they join me or face utter oblivion! Such is the Wrath of Fire!"

"I must say, I've always appreciated that you're not afraid to take such bold actions. What would the Daimyos say?"

"If this allegiance with Yagura goes through then I won't need the Daimyos. I'll slaughter them all." Orochimaru's brow popped up with curiosity.

"That's most definitely a bold move…the Daimyos represent the country as a whole. If you kill them…you'd be bringing all of the countries under the rule of the individual Kages…"

"Exactly," Danzo whispered. "Together our shinobi are loyal to us, thus the common people will not revolt so long as we keep them oppressed. The world will be united; it will be at peace for centuries! When peace finally does come to this world…everything will be as it should." Danzo turned, a smile still worn on his face. "Ensure that nothing goes wrong during these Exams, and that lord Yagura is treated like a deity." Orochimaru chuckled and bowed his head before exiting.

* * *

Neji and Naruto lied on the grassy on top of a hill, staring up at the sky. "Oh man, that one looks like granny Tsunade!"

"I hate this! I can't see clouds with this damn thing on!"

"Seriously, your all seeing kekkei genkai can't see clouds?"

"It can see people, objects, the entire area around me, chakra systems, through solid objects, but it just beams right through clouds! Don't ask me why, it just does!"

"Well…" Naruto sat up, looking around curiously. "You could probably take it off. I mean nobody is around here for miles right Neji?"

"Oh shit!" Neji sat up, staring directly ahead. In confusion, Naruto followed his partner's gaze.

"Oh shit," Naruto snapped. A young girl with long brown hair, a curse mark on her forehead, and the Byakugan walked out of the woods. Hanabi's seemingly hollow eyes focused in on Neji. "Um…are we in trouble…?"

"I think so," Neji whispered. "That's Hinata's little sister…" There was a moment of silence between the three.

"Should we kill her?" Neji quickly smacked Naruto's arm at the thought of such an action.

"No Naruto! You idiot!"

"Neji and Naruto," Hanabi repeated with a soft voice. Said Genin jumped with shock, looking at the little girl before them. "If I'm not mistaken…you two would be Neji Hyuga, and Naruto Uzumaki…"

"Okay, _now_ we kill her," Neji whispered. "On my mark…"

"I'm not here to cause trouble," Hanabi quickly said, raising her hands up defensively. "Please…I want to know how you two escaped." Neji and Naruto looked at each other with confusion and then back at the little girl. "Please, there's no one here. And you two offer me my only chance for freedom." Hanabi ran her hand up her face, holding her hair away from her forehead, showing her curse mark. Neji's face changed from panic to silent rage. "Neji Hyuga, you were a member of the branch family, like me, and yet the main house members couldn't stop you or find you from your curse mark. Obviously you found some way to overcome the curse mark."

"W-wait, we can't just kidnap the daughter of the Hyuga Clan's leader," Naruto sputtered. "Can we…? I mean if we did so then we'd definitely have the village on our asses."

"I know," Neji sighed. "But I know what it's like to be a member of the branch family." Neji pulled his headband up, allowing himself to see Hanabi with his own eyes. His youngest cousin had a blank expression, but one look in her eyes and Neji saw a little girl who was broken down into nothing better than a slave. Neji shook his head, sighing heavily. "I don't know. This is something we definitely need to run by Yahiko at least."

"Please, I'll do anything."

"Listen um…"

"Hanabi."

"Hanabi," Naruto continued. "Neji and I are…a part of a group working to…make the world a better place. But people like your father or the Hokage would only see us as criminals."

"I have secrets about the Hyuga Clan." Neji's eyes hardened a bit at the statement. "I'll do whatever it takes. I hate this life. You have no idea what it's like being treated like garbage by your own family." Hanabi clenched her tiny fists as hard as she could. "My father doesn't even notice me, and I'm nothing but a servant, a slave, to my sister!" Hanabi closed her eyes, fighting the tears that started to build up. "Do you have any idea what it's like to be looked down on by your own father? The man who created me could care less whether I lived or died. Don't I at least deserve some love from him? Some form of compassion? And to my sister I'm just her pet. The only way I was able to come here was by asking her for a day off. The last time I had a day off from serving my father or sister was nearly half a year ago! I'm not one of them, I'm not even a person. I'm just a thing to them!" Hanabi lowered her head, tears running down her cheeks and hitting the ground at her feet. Neji and Naruto's expressions showed that Hanabi's speech obviously moved them. "I don't even feel like a person. I don't even have an identity. I would give anything…to be treated like a normal person by _anyone_. Even if I have to betray my clan, even if I have to betray my village…if it means I'll get away from this life I'll do it. Please…"

Naruto and Neji looked at each other, their eyes meeting. Hanabi watched with worry. The boys' eyes lowered to the ground before Naruto looked over at Hanabi.

"Listen…our sensei, Yahiko, he's really high up in the group we're in, and he's a real hard ass. I don't think he'd agree to this, even after that speech…" Hanabi's heart dropped like a sack of bricks. Tears ran down her cheeks as she lowered her head in sorrow.

"I understand…" Neji and Naruto's eyes met again, this time a glimmer of deviousness could be seen.

"But," Neji quickly spoke. Hanabi's eyes moved up slowly to the two boys who were now grinning to each other.

* * *

Sakura opened the door and walked into her house, "Uncle, I'm home." The kunoichi looked around the empty room before taking a step forward.

"HOLD IT!" Sakura yelped then caught herself from falling over. Again, the bubble gum haired girl looked around, but saw no one. Finally, Sakura looked up, seeing her uncle standing on the ceiling. "Wipe your feet first."

Sakura narrowed her eyes questioningly, "Are you doing the same thing Zaku was doing?"

"Standing upside down to sharpen my mind and trust my senses?" Sakura nodded. "No, I'm cleaning." Higure bent over and started dusting the ceiling. "You would not BELIEVE how much dust gets up here!"

"Why are you deciding to clean now," Sakura asked as she took off her shoes at the door.

"This is my house, and I like a clean house confound it." Sakura hummed as she threw her shuriken pouch on the couch. "Dinner is in the kitchen."

"I went out to eat with Zaku."

"No Dosu?" Sakura covered her mouth and giggled a bit. "Uh oh…what happened?"

"Well, Dosu apparently hasn't been working on any new abilities during these past few weeks right?" Higure placed his hands on the ceiling, flowing his chakra from his feet to his hands.

"Right," the light haired brunette replied as his feet dangled for a moment while he clung to the ceiling by the palms of his hands.

"Well," Sakura continued as her uncle landed on the floor, "Now Dosu decides he wants to train with Might Guy to learn how to be super fast like Lee."

"Oh that's not hard. You just need to know how to open the Eight Gates." Sakura tilted her head curiously.

"Do you know how to do that?"

"Well, not like Guy does. It takes at least four or five gates to be opened to become that rage-ful red."

"How many can you open?"

"Well most Jonin and ANBU are required to be able to open at least four of the Gates. So…about four."

"So you could've taught Dosu?"

"Doesn't mean I want to." Sakura scowled at her uncle, realizing that they somehow made their way to the kitchen. "But opening the Inner Gates isn't that hard. It's just ridiculous that Lee can open so many of them as a Genin."

"Well when do they start teaching shinobi how to do that?"

"Usually around Chunin level." Higure pulled out a jug of orange juice. "Danzo wanted to make it a requirement that Genin in Konoha should know how to open at least two of the Inner Gates before going to the Chunin Exams. That was a stupid idea…"

Sakura narrowed her eyes for a moment, thinking hard to herself. "So…you could teach _me_ how to be super fast like Lee?" Higure stopped pouring juice in his cup before snapping his head towards Sakura. "What? I'm facing Shikamaru Nara! You know, that kid with the genius IQ! I have to fight him! I gotta have some type of edge on him. Chakra control and medical ninjutsu won't cut it!"

"Study your opponent then! I'm not teaching my niece some move that'll kill herself!"

"Oh come on! You'd teach it to me if I were a boy!"

"Oh lord," Higure exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "You have never seen me commit one act of sexual discrimination. So where's your proof that I'd teach you a dangerous and harmful jutsu if you were a boy?"

"I don't know! I need an edge damn it! Shikamaru is a genius! He can figure me out like nothing!"

"Oh it's not that hard. You're not stupid are you? You had the second highest grades in your graduating class."

"Yeah, after Shikamaru!"

Higure rolled his eyes again before facing his niece. "Alright, it's easy: study your opponent. Shikamaru's most powerful weapon is his brain. He only has one jutsu, that's a weakness. What does that jutsu revolve around?"

"Using shadows," Sakura answered simply.

Higure looked at his niece for a moment before turning away, "And that's all you're getting from me."

"Oh what the hell!"

"You have to help yourself with this one. I can't fight all your battles for you." Sakura threw her head back and groaned loudly before walking away. Higure chuckled, shaking his head before taking a drink of juice.

* * *

Yahiko was in the team's hotel room, reading one of Jiraiya's adventure novels. The door suddenly opened. Yahiko turned his head to the entrance, seeing Naruto walk in, followed by Neji and then a third little girl he didn't recognize. The orange haired man blinked with confusion before he noticed the familiar curse seal on her forehead.

"Um…guys…" Yahiko tried to think of something to say, but only one thing came to mind. "What the hell are you doing?"

"She found us out," Neji snapped.

"She what now?" Neji reached up and pulled up his headband, showing his eyes. Yahiko's heart nearly jumped into his throat as he stood up suddenly, "What the hell are you-,"

"She knows who we are," Naruto stated. "Neji and I were working on his fighting without using the Byakugan, so he was fighting blind again and not using the Gentle Fist."

"Well, we started taunting each other," Neji continued, "Using each other's real names and whatnot."

"And then Neji has to activate his Byakugan and used his rotation against me because he was about to lose." Neji narrowed his eyes at his teammate. "Then he noticed Hanabi hiding in the bushes."

"Hanabi, as in Hanabi Hyuga? As in the daughter of the leader of the Hyuga Clan?"

"That's right," Hanabi replied with a nod. "I'm sure lord Danzo would like to know why a Hyuga rogue and his village's only Jinchuriki are here and in disguise." Yahiko gapped with shock before snapping his head to his two students.

"You guys are idiots! You've ruined the whole operation!"

"She made us a deal," Neji snapped, glaring angrily at Yahiko. "I say we hear it out." Yahiko groaned before focusing back on Hanabi.

"I won't tell anyone who you all are if you take me with you away from this village." Yahiko blinked rapidly with confusion. "Whatever you did when Neji ran away, the curse mark doesn't affect him anymore. I want you to do the same for me. And in return, I don't rat you out to the Hokage." Yahiko opened his mouth to scream, but was cut off, "And I have secrets on the Hyuga Clan and a few on Konoha, which I cannot reveal as long as I have this curse seal on my head." Yahiko remained gapping, unable to think of anything to say. "What do you say?" Yahiko looked up at Neji and Naruto, both of whom nodded behind Hanabi's back.

"I don't have a choice do I," Yahiko asked, looking back at Hanabi.

"Nope," was the young girl's simple reply. "And I promise whatever organization you're apart of, I'll carry my own weight." Yahiko took a deep breath before sighing heavily.

"I know I'm going to get shit about this later from Konan…but deal. But if you're going to come with us, then you find one of these two during the third stage, otherwise you're getting left behind." Neji and Naruto glanced at each other before looking back at their sensei.

"Don't you mean after the third stage," Neji asked.

"No…we're planning something special for the third stage. We'll discuss it later. But if Hanabi wants to escape with us, then find either Neji or Naruto after their matches in the third stage immediately."

"I shall," Hanabi replied with a small bow. "Thank you very much Yahiko-sama. I must go back home now. Your secret is safe with me." Yahiko nodded with a frown.

"Escort young Hanabi to the door," Yahiko ordered. Naruto and Neji nodded then followed Hanabi out of the door.

As soon as they were out of the front door, Hanabi spun around and threw her arms around Neji and Naruto. The two boys paused for a second before smiling softly. Naruto placed a hand on the girl's shoulder while Neji patted her head.

"I can't thank you both enough…" Hanabi released the boys then ran out into the streets to get home quickly. Despite her back being turned to them, Naruto gave a small wave regardless of whether she saw it or not.

"That was a really good plan," Naruto said, glancing over at Neji.

"I know," the young Hyuga replied with a cocky smirk. "Of course Yahiko sensei played his part splendidly." Naruto snickered quietly before following Neji back up to the room.

Yahiko was looking out the window, watching Hanabi run off with a smile on his face. He had also witnessed Hanabi hugging the two boys. The spiky haired man turned around, shaking his head before he grabbed his book and started reading again. "Idiots," Yahiko murmured with a grin widening on his face.

* * *

The last week passed in no time. The streets were filled with citizens and shinobi from Konoha, Amegakure, Suna, and even Kiri. People flooded around the stadium, waiting to get in and take their seats. The only contestants there so far were Naruto, Neji, Shikamaru, Gaara, and Tobi. Naruto looked around, wondering about Sakura and her teammates.

In the stands, Hinata sat by her father's side while Hanabi sat by her sister's side. "Which one is it," Hiashi asked.

"The blind one," Hinata replied. The Hyuga leader activated his Byakugan, scanning the boy's entire body. "I saw it when he beat me. His palm was open like he was using the Gentle Fist, and then he closed his hand into a fist. Why would he do that unless he wanted to hide the fact that he was a Hyuga in disguise?" Hiashi hummed quietly, seemingly deep in thought. "Father…?"

"Hanabi," Hiashi suddenly spoke. The youngest sister jumped with fright, looking over at her father quickly. "You seem nervous. What's wrong?"

"I-I'm just anxious to see Hinata's opponent in action I suppose…" The head of the Hyuga hummed curiously, keeping his eyes on Neji.

Yahiko milled towards the back of the stadium, looking around in the crowd curiously. A man wearing a black cloak wearing a hood over his head approached Yahiko. The orange haired man noticed the hooded figure immediately.

"How many are here?"

"We currently have thirty five spread around the stadium. Also, Danzo has ANBU in disguise all around the stadium, and he even as some posing as civilians. Nagato managed to pinpoint the highest concentration of ANBU in the stadium." The hooded man pointed to the seats across from where the Kage would watch the matches.

"His paranoia knows no bounds," Yahiko murmured. "Why there?"

"Jiraiya-sama thinks it's because it would be the clearest shot for someone to try an assassinate Danzo or one of his allies, including the Fourth Mizukage." Yahiko's eyes hardened.

"So…Yagura is here?" Yahiko looked the man in the face, "Itachi, where is everyone positioned?"

"Jiraiya himself is stationed over with the highest concentration of ANBU. Over there with him are Zabuza Momochi and six others." Yahiko's eyes widened slightly with shock. "We recruited him while you were gone. And we've quelled him enough so he won't leap across the stadium to try and kill Yagura again. I will be stationed over here with a few others, across from us, Konan, Nagato and ten others are stationed. We also have shinobi in the stadium to give us an escape route that you planned out."

"Excellent…"

"This is a risky plan. Our advantage over Danzo was that we were hidden more or less. If we do this…"

"We'll reveal to everyone that we're serious, and show the whole world in front of their leaders that we're going to bring a new age of peace." Itachi sighed before placing his hand on Yahiko's shoulder.

"I hope you know what you're doing…" Yahiko nodded to Itachi who walked down towards the seats.

On the ground, the contestants heard someone running up behind them. Naruto turned, seeing his opponent, Zaku Abumi, running up to the line with Sakura following behind him. Zaku's shinobi attire seemed to have changed since the preliminaries, as did Sakura's. Zaku's only real change in clothing was his V-neck shirt with short, baggy sleeves, and a black turtle neck undershirt, and he no longer wore the faceguard. Sakura wore a shoulder-less red shirt with long baggy sleeves that covered her hands, like Dosu's. She had white circles around the trim of the sleeves and up just where the shirt cut off at the shoulders. She wore shorts that didn't hug her thighs like before, but were far from baggy like Zaku's pants.

"Sorry we're late," Sakura called out, stopping next to Zaku, in front of Naruto. "Did we miss anything?"

"No," Naruto replied with a faint blush coming across his cheeks. "You uh…you look nice Sakura-chan." Sakura blushed, glancing down at her attire quickly.

"Well uh…thank you Ryu." Naruto grinned bashfully as he started to rub the back of his neck.

"Yo, where's our knuckle-dragging teammate," Zaku asked, looking around. "I thought with his training with Guy he'd be here super early."

"LOOK OUT BELOW!" Naruto, Zaku, and Sakura looked up, seeing a pair of figures falling towards them.

"CRAP," Zaku shouted. The three Genin dove out of the way as Dosu landed smoothly on the ground while Guy came down with a smashing result. "What the crap dude!"

Dosu looked up, his bandages completely gone. Now he wore a black mask to cover his mouth and a Konoha headband. Both of his eyes were shown, and his brown, shaggy hair hung loosely over his headband. His usually baggy shirt was now synched tightly around his waist by a belt, his left sleeve was completely torn away, revealing his entire arm which had a forearm guard, like Zaku's, and a sweatband of sorts just above his bicep.

"Sorry, guys, Guy sensei said we should make a dramatic entrance with the FLAMES OF YOUTH!" Zaku and Sakura's jaws dropped and their faces twisted with shock at their comrade's statement.

"Dosu! Have you finally embraced the flames of youth," Guy asked gleefully.

"No, that was a joke," Dosu stated bluntly. Guy's shoulders slouched with disappointment. "Sorry big guy."

"I'll get you sooner or later," Guy boomed, recovering from his disappointment quickly with a grin. "The flames of youth are just waiting to explode within you!"

"Yeah, that's great. Listen, thanks for training me and everything, but you've gotta go in the stands now."

"Right, I'll be watching your match closely to see if the flames of youth explode within you or not!" With that, Guy crouched down and rocketed towards the stands.

"That old guy has way too much energy," Dosu said, shaking his head. The hunched over Genin froze as he felt a hand on top of his head. Dosu's eyes moved up before he turned his head, seeing Zaku rubbing his hair. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Hey, I didn't know you had hair. I always thought you were bald, or maybe your scalp was gone and your brain was showing or something." Dosu sighed before looking over at Sakura.

"Hey, I had to deal with him all week. And you're still in my debt, got it?"

"Yes ma'am…"

"Listen up contestants," Hayate spoke. The Genin turned their attention toward the proctor who let out a few weak coughs. "The third stage is about ready to begin. Let me go over the rules for you kids…"


	15. Third Stage

Danzo sat at the head of the stadium with Hanzo sitting on his right side, and Yagura sitting to his left. Sasori was sitting on the other side of Yagura with Orochimaru by his side, chatting quietly. Danzo was slightly annoyed by this. Orochimaru was supposed to be his personal bodyguard at the moment, and he was talking to Sasori and that Kabuto boy. Danzo shifted his gaze to Yagura's bodyguard, Kisame Hoshigaki. The Hokage couldn't say he felt one hundred percent safe around the blue skinned swordsmen.

"So," Danzo spoke, "Yagura-sama, tell me about this Tobi fellow."

"He's an annoying pest," Yagura replied sternly, almost annoyed. "But he's still a skilled shinobi…"

"Why hasn't he participated in the Chunin Exams sooner?"

"My, aren't we nosey," Kisame stated. Danzo glanced up at the grinning shark that turned back to Yagura. "Lord Mizukage has had a long travel here. I'm sure you could understand lord Hokage that Yagura would like to relax for awhile and not be bothered with such pointless questions." Danzo narrowed his eye on Kisame before looking back at the expressionless Mizukage.

"Very well," Danzo murmured. "My apologies lord Mizukage." The short Kage nodded once, keeping his eyes fixated on the arena below. Danzo observed Yagura for a moment before looking up at his pale skinned guard, "Orochimaru, come here now."

"One moment," Orochimaru faintly whispered to Sasori. The Kazekage nodded then looked forward as Orochimaru walked towards Danzo. "Yes lord Hokage?" Danzo motioned for Orochimaru to come closer. The Sannin leaned forward, his face inches from Danzo's.

"Are the ANBU set up," Danzo murmured.

"Yes my lord, we have nearly half of the ANBU in and around the stadium. I still don't understand why we're setting up such robust security measures though my lord."

"With an unstable Jinchuriki and a boy that looks like our late Yellow Flash, you think I'd leave something to chance." Orochimaru nodded solemnly, not questioning Danzo's intent. "Do me a favor while you're chatting with Sasori: keep an eye on Kisame Hoshigaki." Orochimaru's eyes moved to the side, barely catching the burly blue man. "I'm not entirely certain about him…"

"Of course lord Danzo," Orochimaru whispered. "But you needn't worry yourself. Nobody will try anything and live to tell about it." Danzo nodded then waved for Orochimaru to move away. The Sannin straightened up then walked back over to Sasori. Despite Orochimaru's assurances, Danzo couldn't help but feel that something would go amiss.

In the stands, Higure leaned forward, shaking his head at Sakura's tardiness. He also mentally questioned the shoulder-less attire she wore. Higure then looked over at Zaku, sighing when he saw the boy wearing a turtle neck. Zaku did boast he'd bring them back. Last, but not least, Higure focused on Naruto. In an instant, he knew that he was Minato's child. Higure knew that blonde hair all too well. The light haired brunette sighed as he looked to the side, seeing a large, hooded man standing next to him.

"Is this seat taken?"

"Of course not," Higure replied. "Please, sit." The man nodded then took a seat next to Higure.

"Looks like there are some promising looking Genin," the man spoke. Higure simply nodded, keeping his eyes on the contestants. "Is there anyone down there that you know?"

"My niece," Higure replied, pointing at Sakura. "The girl with the short pink hair." The man looked hard for a moment before nodding. "She's fighting against Shikamaru Nara in the second match."

"If he's anything like his father, your niece is in for quite a fight." Higure nodded in agreement, paying no attention to the fact this stranger knew Shikaku Nara. Hell, who hadn't heard of the famous Ino-Shika-Cho trio?

After the explanation on the rules, all the contestants except Neji went up into the stands. The young Hyuga waited, just like everyone else, until the tardy Sasuke Uchiha arrived. Time went by slowly, and the crowd as well as the contestants started to become impatient. Danzo was well aware of the people's restlessness, but he didn't want to disqualify his prized Uchiha just yet.

"Can we hurry this along," Yagura murmured. "I came here in order to see the Chunin Exams, not stare at some blind child." Danzo shifted his eye to the Mizukage then quickly rose to his feet.

"Attention my people," the Hokage bellowed. "In light of Sasuke Uchiha's absence, we will skip the first round as of now, and move onto the second one."

The crowd was surprised, but relieved that something was finally going to happen. Danzo sat back down in silence. Granted he didn't want to skip Sasuke's match, but if he wasn't going to risk an alliance with the Mizukage for it. The Jinchuriki Kage was known for his short temper and impatience.

Sakura was beyond nervous. It was bad enough she had to fight the village's smartest Genin, but now she was in the first match, and in front of such a large crowd. She hated to admit it, but she had a slight phobia of being the center of attention in front of such a large crowd.

"Come on Sakura," Dosu said, "We ain't got all day. Go down there and lose already." Sakura snapped her head around, glaring at her teammate.

"I hope you lose an arm against Gaara." The kunoichi quickly turned on her heels then went towards the stairs.

In less than two minutes, Sakura made it down to the arena, standing across from a bored looking Shikamaru. She took a moment to steady her nerves, but the faint roar of hundreds of people chattering reminded Sakura that there was a huge crowd watching her. Whether or not Shikamaru knew about this little fear, Sakura didn't know, but she figured the boy would find out sooner or later. Still, Sakura couldn't imagine how Shikamaru could use that against her. Then again that's what made Shikamaru so dangerous in combat. No doubt Shikamaru was running countless tactics in his head right now of how to easily best Sakura. The kunoichi shook her head, trying to suppress her paranoia.

'_Calm down…just calm down Sakura…'_

"Sakura Haruno, Shikamaru Nara, are you both ready?" Sakura nodded, as did Shikamaru. "Very well, begin!"

Sakura immediately sprung backwards, pulling out a pair of shuriken from her pouch before she hurled them forward. Shikamaru huffed then simply took two steps back as the shuriken imbedded themselves in the ground. Sakura landed on the ground, sliding back to a halt. Shikamaru narrowed his eyes then took a step forward. In response, Sakura took a step back. The lazy genius huffed before he craned his neck to the side with a light crack.

"So, you're smart enough to keep your distance," Shikamaru stated. Sakura cringed slightly with annoyance. "You should know that won't be enough though." Sakura's emerald eyes moved up for a moment before looking back at Shikamaru. The lazy Genin moved his head up, noticing that the sun was right above them. _'Great, she's noticed that little detail. What a drag.'_ Shikamaru lowered his head, then gasped with shock. Sakura's fist shot forward as Shikamaru barely managed to pull his head back. The boy stared at the kunoichi's fist with a shocked expression before forming a hand sign to activate his jutsu. Though his shadow stretched out and touched Sakura's, Shikamaru soon realized that his jutsu wasn't working. _'Damn genjutsu!'_ Shikamaru looked around, realizing that he was surrounded by a series of Sakura's. _'She's a Genin, and though she's skilled with genjutsu, this can't be higher than a C-rank, which means breaking it should be easy.'_ The boy closed his eyes as he formed another hand seal, "Release!" The copies of Sakura disappeared. Much to Shikamaru's surprise, the kunoichi was nowhere to be seen. "Damn it, what the hell is going on?" The boy looked forward, seeing a hole in the ground where Sakura stood. "Awe damn it!"

A massive explosion went off underneath Shikamaru's feet, erupting a tower of dust and smoke. The Genin flipped out of the smoke with nothing more than a few scratches. The boy landed a few feet away from the massive hole in the ground caused by the explosion, and sent his shadow forward. No matter where she was underground, as soon as his shadow touched the darkness he'd have her. The ground broke apart near the wall behind Shikamaru. Sakura leaped out of the hole quickly, landing in a crouched position on the wall before she sprinted. Shikamaru turned around to get a better look at Sakura. The tunnel the kunoichi dug allowed his jutsu longer range, which meant he had the advantage. Sakura looked back with a worried look, seeing Shikamaru's shadow catching up to her. Quickly, she leaned to the side, placing something on the wall before the shadow caught her. Shikamaru narrowed his eyes, unable to see clearly what Sakura placed on the wall. A tiny flicker of flame shot his mind into alarm: a paper bomb. The explosion did two things: interrupted Shikamaru's jutsu, and blew Sakura back safely outside of the jutsu's range. Sakura grunted as she hit the ground, rolling over a few times before stopping. Shikamaru scowled as she recalled his shadow, staring annoyingly at his opponent. Sakura groaned as she rose to her feet, shaking her head clear of the ringing and deliriousness.

"Impressive," Shikamaru admitted, "If not totally stupid." Sakura smirked, some blood trailing down the corner of her mouth. "Women, I swear…" Shikamaru carefully noted something: when Sakura threw the shuriken and when she placed the explosive tag on the wall she used her right hand. The boy assumed that, due to her unusually baggy sleeves, that she was hiding something in her right hand. _'Can't take any chances…I need to find someway to get close to her. But she loves to use explosives, and I don't want to end up in bits and pieces. Wait…yep, got it.'_

Shikamaru took a small breath before charging forward. Confused by this thoughtless move, Sakura immediately hurled a few shuriken forward. Shikamaru stopped to carefully watch and avoid the throwing stars. As soon as they passed by him, the genius Genin continued forward. Sakura narrowed her eyes before throwing a pair of needles forward. Shikamaru stopped again, watching the needles closely. He couldn't help but notice something: the needles were fatter than normal needles should be. One thought instantly popped into his mind, setting off alarms. Without wasting another second, Shikamaru quickly dove forward as the needles passed over him, sticking into the ground before exploding behind him.

"Paper bombs around the needles," Shikamaru grunted before rolling to a stop. "Can't say I saw that coming." The boy turned back to Sakura, who was now further up the wall. _'I didn't have time to use the explosion like I wanted. But I think I've close enough distance, and I don't think she realizes she set herself up.'_ Shikamaru smirked before extending his shadow forward.

Sakura gasped with shock as she felt her entire body becoming unresponsive. The kunoichi moved her eyes down, seeing a shadow she casted down the wall. "Damn it," she cursed.

"Sorry Sakura," Shikamaru stated with a cocky grin. The boy jumped backwards, causing Sakura to jump forward off the wall. The kunoichi landed across from Shikamaru whose eyes narrowed on her. "I didn't think you were stupid enough to get caught like that. Care to explain?"

"I-I was thinking that your jutsu had to connect to my feet, not my shadow," Sakura admitted bitterly to herself. "I guess it slipped my mind." Shikamaru huffed, seemingly agitated by Sakura's ignorance.

In the stands, Higure sighed with disappointment, leaning forward as he placed his chin in his hand. "Looks like its game over for your niece," the hooded man sitting next to Higure spoke.

"Looks like it…"

Zaku and Dosu watched the match with almost pleading looks in their eyes. "Come on Sakura," Zaku murmured.

"She's on a team with us," Dosu snapped. "She's got to have one more trick up her ass somewhere!"

"But she's captured by Shikamaru's jutsu," Zaku added sourly. "I think it's over…" Dosu sighed, placing his hands on the railing before he rested his chin on it as well.

Naruto's jaw was tense as was his jaw. "Come on Sakura-chan…"

Shikamaru raised his left arm, causing Sakura to raise her right arm. The kunoichi looked at her arm with shock before closing her eyes tightly, trying to fight against the jutsu. This confirmed to Shikamaru that there was something in her hand. "Let's see what you're hiding shall we…?"

"Wait, please don't!" Shikamaru paused, much to Sakura's relief.

"Why not?"

"F-for your own safety."

"Sakura, in case you forgot: I control your every action. Whatever you're hiding in there can't be used against me." Shikamaru put his hand on his wrist and clenched it into a fist. Sakura did the same, but grabbed her sleeve in the process.

"Don't," the kunoichi cried, closing her eyes shut tightly. Shikamaru huffed then pulled Sakura's sleeve up past her elbow. To his shock, there was some type of device strapped to Sakura's arm.

"What the hell," Shikamaru questioned. Sakura's eyes snapped open and a wicked smile crossed her lips as a snapping string was heard. A series of kunai with pink bags attached to the ends and needles, all with explosive tags wrapped around them, were launched from the device. "Damn it!"

Shikamaru started pacing backwards with a look of alarm on his face. Sakura copied Shikamaru's movements, but had a wide smile on her face. Eventually, Shikamaru paced Sakura out of his own jutsu, much to the relief of the kunoichi. Shikamaru pulled out a few shuriken then hurled them forward, cutting the bags on the kunai open. Rose pedals flew out from the bags, much to the confusion of the Genin. However, he caught a glimpse of one of the pedals, seeing it had the symbol for a paper bomb on it. Shikamaru's eyes widened with shock before the kunai with paper bombs came by and exploded in the center of the rose pedal flurry. There was a chain of explosions that went off, once again engulfing Shikamaru in dust and smoke.

"Whoops, did I do that," Sakura questioned mockingly. Shikamaru slid out of the side of the smoke, his jacket torn and tattered even more so than before. "Oh crap. How do you keep surviving those?"

"I wouldn't be much of a Konoha shinobi if I didn't now would I?"

Higure's eyes were wide with shock. Not only was he alarmed by the amount of explosives his niece had managed to use in a five minute period, but the fact that she also used her enemy's own jutsu against them was another reason for his surprise. The man sitting next to him laughed, his tone obviously amused.

"Damn, that's some niece you've got there!"

"Yeah," Higure agreed softly.

Sakura's teammates were laughing, surprised and excited for their comrade. "I told you she had another trick left," Dosu exclaimed.

"Yeah, yeah, she's not out of the woods yet. Shikamaru is still kicking in case you didn't notice."

"Yeah, but she's managed to out maneuver him so far! That's got to count for something right? Hell everyone always said Shikamaru's intelligence was already at Jonin level. She's keeping up with him so far!"

"That's because she's planned ahead of the match," Zaku stated sharply. "Shikamaru's plans can come to him in an instant. So unless Sakura wrapped her entire body in paper bombs, I think she's done outsmarting him." Dosu narrowed his eyes at Zaku before turning back to the fight.

"You're an ass…" Zaku's shoulders slumped as he glanced over at his partner.

Neji couldn't help but smile at how many twists and turns Sakura was had up her sleeve. And the fact that it had literal meaning was all the more amusing. "Alright Sakura," Naruto shouted.

Sakura blushed, barely able to hear the blonde shouting at him. The kunoichi took a deep breath, calming herself as she focused solely on Shikamaru. Surprisingly she found herself able to block out the crowd by concentrating on Shikamaru. Hopefully this display of dealing with a genius whose IQ was ridiculous for a boy his age would be enough for the judges to declare her a Chunin. If not, she still had _one_ more plan in mind.

Shikamaru stared at Sakura with tired eyes. He couldn't deny that she had impressed him with her level of preparation. The fact Shikamaru didn't plan ahead of the battle was a mistake on his part, and he was smart enough to admit that. Still, he wouldn't be making the mistake of pulling up anymore of the kunoichi's sleeves anytime soon.

"You ready to finish this Shikamaru," Sakura questioned. The boy huffed then put his hands in his pockets.

"You gonna give up now that you're out of tricks?"

"Now who said I was out of tricks?" Shikamaru narrowed his eyes skeptically. Sakura reached back behind her waist. Shikamaru's eyes widened with alarm before he shot his shadow forward.

'_Damn it!'_ The boy noticed at the last second Sakura was out of range. Shikamaru quickly rushed forward, his shadow stretching as far as it could go. However, Shikamaru wasn't nearly fast enough. Sakura pulled out three white balls in her hands before she threw them forward. Shikamaru gazed at the strange balls as they came towards him. _'What the—FLASH BOMBS?'_ The bombs went off right in front of Shikamaru's face. The boy cried out, shielding his face with his arms. Unable to see, and the radiating light preventing any shadow to be formed, Shikamaru quickly processed what would happen next.

A fist impacted the side of Shikamaru's face, throwing the boy onto the ground with a heavy thud. Before he could move, his arm was pulled behind his back and held in place as a foot stamped his wrist to the ground before Sakura sat on his back. The kunoichi used her other hand to place a kunai at the back of Shikamaru's neck. Unable to move or perform any hand signs, and still partially blind, Shikamaru knew it was game over.

"How troublesome," Shikamaru groaned beneath Sakura. "I give…" Hayate nodded then raised his hand high above his head.

"The winner is: Sakura Haruno!" The crowd started to roar as they cheered. Sakura grinned and blushed bashfully as she got off Shikamaru's back. She helped the boy to his feet.

"Are you okay Shikamaru?"

"Just fine," the boy replied with a smile. Sakura blinked with confusion before narrowing her eyes at the boy.

"You seem happy that I beat you…?"

"Well, sort of. I figure the competition this year is way too crazy for me. I mean you got Sasuke, some blind guy who defeated Hinata, and a bloodthirsty Jinchuriki, as well as that Tobi guy who for some reason can't be hit. I figure if I tried out for the next Exams I wouldn't have to deal with so many troublesome opponents."

"So…you basically threw the match against me…?"

"If you wanna see it like that," Shikamaru said with a shrug. "I wanted to at least make an impression on the judges, but I wasn't really fighting to win either. Still, you gave me one hell of a run for my money. I could've had anyone else beaten in two minutes flat. But damn it, you nearly blew me apart every minute of that match." Sakura chuckled as she rubbed the back of her neck.

"Sorry about that…"

"Don't be. Hell, you came to the battle more prepare than I was. I just hope for the next person you fight that you ran out of explosives." Sakura grinned deviously before winking.

"Not by a long shot." The lazy genius rolled his eyes before he turned and walked towards the exit. Sakura smiled then waved to the cheering crowd before following Shikamaru's path.

"The next match: Ryu vs. Zaku Abumi," Hayate announced.

"Your turn big guy," Dosu stated. Zaku grinned as he flexed his hands. "Try not to hurt Kitten's boyfriend too badly."

"No promises!" Zaku jumped off the railings and landed on the ground, waiting for his opponent.

Across the arena, Naruto leapt from the stands just like Zaku. The two Genin walked forward then stood across from each other with Hayate looking back and forth between them. Both shinobi, despite themselves, couldn't help but grin at the prospect of fighting in front of such a large crowd cheering for them.

"Ryu, Zaku Abumi, are you both ready?"

"Ready," Naruto replied. Zaku nodded in agreement.

"Very well, begin!"

Zaku shot forward without sparing a second and thrusted his fist at Naruto's head. The blonde quickly jerked his head to the side. Naruto threw his fist forward. Zaku spun to the side and threw a high kick. Naruto raised his arm to shield the side of his face, bracing himself as Zaku's blow landed. The blonde grunted before pushing his opponent's leg away. Zaku spun away as he planted his foot on the ground and smirked at Naruto. The blonde craned his neck from side to side before taking in a small breath.

Zaku raised his arm high above his head before slamming his hand into the ground. Naruto had no idea what the boy was planning until suddenly he was thrown into the air by a powerful blast of wind. Naruto cried out as he was launched off the ground. Zaku pulled his hand out and grabbed four kunai, two in each hand, and hurled them at Naruto. The blonde saw the knives coming at him and then twisted his body around in midair as the blades passed by his spinning body. Zaku scowled before rushing to where Naruto would land.

The blonde hit the ground facing Zaku and immediately fell into a crouch. Naruto spun around as his opponent's blow missed and then kicked the back of Zaku's knee. The black haired boy fell onto his knee and hands. Zaku snapped his head around, seeing Naruto about ready to strike him. Zaku used the wind holes in his hands to launch himself back, slamming his body against Naruto's. The two boys flew back before hitting the ground and rolling away from each other.

Dosu watched the match in silence from the stands until he heard Sakura running up behind him. The kunoichi used the rails to stop herself before she breathlessly asked, "What'd I miss?"

"A mediocre bout of taijutsu," Dosu replied bluntly.

"Who's winning?"

"It's even so far." Sakura took a deep breath before she looked back at her blonde crush and black haired teammate.

Zaku rushed forward once again, prompting Naruto to brace himself. The black haired Genin stopped a few yards away however before throwing his hand outward. For a split second, Naruto didn't know what he was doing until a forceful blast of wind threw him back. The boy hit the ground and rolled back head over heels before digging his fingers into the ground to stop himself. As soon as he looked up, Naruto saw Zaku rushing at him again. The blonde, not knowing how much time he had left, stood up and crossed his arms over his body. Zaku threw both hands out this time, screaming loudly as he launched another blast from his palms. The force of the wind was greater this time, sending Naruto sailing off the ground before he smacked into the back wall. The impact was strong enough to leave a few weak cracks in the wall. Naruto groaned as he fell to the ground, landing on his hands and knees. Zaku grinned before he flipped forward onto his hands and launched himself off the ground. He landed on the wall above Naruto, who turned around and looked up with shock. Zaku threw his hand forward, sending a constant wave of wind down on Naruto. The blonde cried out as the weight of a boulder was pushed down on him.

"You can give up," Zaku shouted over the hissing sound of his palms. Naruto groaned, cracking one eye open to hopefully see some way out of his predicament. "Give up kid!" Naruto screamed in defiance as he tried to push himself up, but to no avail. _'Damn it…'_ Zaku's attack suddenly died down. No longer feeling an immense weight on him, Naruto flipped onto his feet and shot himself away from Zaku. As he landed on the ground, Naruto stumbled forward before falling on his side. Zaku fell off the wall and landed on the ground, staring at his opponent lying on the ground. "Hurts don't it?"

"Just a bit," Naruto replied, giving a pained smirk before he started to get up. "I think I learned a little bit about your jutsu though." The blonde stood straight before turning his head to the left, staring at Zaku with a cocky smirk. "Your jutsu has a certain range, which is why you were rushing me awhile ago. And as just shown: you can't keep up the blast forever. It has a set time limit before it stops."

"Well, not really. If I keep it up for too long my arms could be blown off. If these wind holes weren't incomplete then I could definitely keep it up for a longer period of time. As for the range, I was just trying to get closer to improve the force. I was running, hence when I launch my attack it has more force behind it." Naruto crossed his arms, turning his body towards Zaku.

"Prove it: hit me right now from this range." Zaku smirked then mentally formed the distance between the two. He had no idea whether the blonde did it on purpose or not, but he was only an inch out of distance. If Zaku blasted him, all Naruto would feel would be the equivalent of a breeze. Zaku let out a small laugh before crossing his arms like Naruto.

"Alright, you got me there. I lied to try and throw you off."

"Now all I've got to do is stay out of your range and I'll be set," Naruto stated. Zaku huffed before lowering himself into a combative stance.

"Good luck with that kid…"

Zaku charged yet again, pulling out three shuriken between his fingers. Naruto lowered himself down, ready to spring at a moment's notice. Zaku threw the shuriken forward. Naruto spun to the side, narrowly missing the shuriken. As Naruto faced Zaku's direction, the black haired boy threw his fist forward. Naruto knocked Zaku's arm away before ducking away. Zaku turned and went after the blonde, aiming his palm at him. Naruto's eyes flared with alarm before he threw his upper body backwards. Naruto's clothes fluttered as the blast missed his body. The blonde placed his hands on the ground then threw his legs up underneath Zaku's armpits. Naruto screamed as he lifted Zaku off the ground with his legs and threw the boy over his body. Zaku held his arms out in front of his face just before hitting the ground. The two boys rolled onto their feet and faced each other in a crouched position.

Zaku narrowed his eyes with agitation. He was getting nowhere fast with this boy, and so far it seemed more like a brawl against two school children than a battle between two prospective shinobi. At this rate he'd never impress the judges enough to be promoted to Chunin. Ryu on the other hand had that impressive moment where he learned two things about Zaku's jutsu in less than two minutes since the match started. Why couldn't the judges have been there during the preliminaries? His move against Shino had impressed the Hokage himself. Now if he tried that he'd probably be ripped to shreds by one of the many leaders watching the match now, or their bodyguards. A thought occurred, causing Zaku to grin.

"Oh yeah, that'll work." Naruto tilted his head with curiosity as Zaku reached back and pulled something out. "You know what this is?" Naruto narrowed his eyes, focusing on a ball in his opponent's hands. "It's a smoke bomb. And guess what I can do with it?" Before Naruto could even think about guessing, Zaku sent a pressurized blast through the smoke bomb. The blonde gasped with shock as he was surrounded by smoke in less than a second. Zaku quickly threw the empty bomb shell to the ground then rushed forward.

Naruto covered his mouth as he coughed, unable to see anything. _'Great, gotta hurry up and get out of here Naruto!'_ The blonde moved to run, but was quickly punched in the face. Naruto staggered backwards, readying his fists but was quickly punched across the face again. The boy cried out and then was punched in the stomach and then twice across the face. Naruto fell on his back and groaned, _'Even better.'_ Naruto rolled backwards onto his hands, standing in a crouched position before leaping into the air. Unbeknownst to him, Zaku attempted to strike, but missed. The black haired boy looked up with confusion as Naruto formed a series of hand signs. "Wind style: vacuum pulse!"

Naruto threw his head forward, roaring as he unleashed a massive wave of wind from his mouth. The smoke broke outward, dissipating and fading as it moved throughout the arena. Zaku had his arms shielding his face as the wind blew down towards him. Naruto closed his mouth then spun towards the ground to increase his momentum. Zaku groaned as he removed his arms and looked up, an expression of shock coming across his face. Naruto screamed as he threw his fist across Zaku's face, throwing the boy into the ground with incredible force. Naruto hit the ground rolling while Zaku just hit the ground. The Jinchuriki rolled forward, spinning around as he stared at the black haired boy who just rolled onto his knees. Blood trailed down the corner of Zaku's mouth. The boy scowled before wiping the blood away while Naruto simply smiled.

"Wind style eh," Zaku questioned. "I wish I'd known that before I used a smoke bomb." Naruto's smile widened into a grin before he cockily huffed. _'We're getting nowhere. This is one huge stalemate. I need something. Well, I do have…but I was planning on saving that for someone like Gaara or Sasuke. But…Sasuke isn't here is he. And if Dosu really is as fast as Lee now then he might beat Gaara after all. Damn it, I'd hate to waste this…but…'_ Zaku reached back, causing Naruto to tense up in preparation. The black haired boy pulled out a strange looking seal. Naruto narrowed his eyes to try and read the symbol on it.

"What is that…?"

Zaku hurled the paper forward, using his wind holes to send it flying forward. Naruto's eyes widened as he jerked his head back, watching the paper seal as it moved over him. Zaku quickly formed a hand seal then screamed loudly. The seal suddenly erupted in a flash of bright chakra that surged like lightning through Naruto's body. The blonde screamed in agony as pain surged through every part of his body. Zaku mouthed 'one, two' before running forward. The seal's chakra surge stopped, allowing Naruto's smoking body to drop to the ground. Zaku slid to a stop in front of his opponent, ready to strike him back down in case he got up. After a few seconds, Zaku relaxed when Naruto didn't move. Hayate walked forward, staring at the incapacitated blonde for a moment.

"The winner is Zaku A—what?" Zaku looked at Hayate quizzically. There was a gust of wind that blew past Zaku, causing the boy to snap his head forward. Naruto was slowly raising himself off the ground by his feet alone. Zaku's eyes were wide with shock, as were the eyes of everyone else in the stands.

Yahiko scowled, leaning forward with shock, _'No…not now Naruto!'_

Jiraiya hissed softly under his breath, _'Damn it. Looks like our cover may get blown too soon!'_ Higure, unknowingly sitting next to Jiraiya, had a confused, pondering expression on his face.

Zaku took a hesitant step away from Naruto, a cold sweat running down the back of his neck, "There's no way you should be moving after that…"

Naruto stood up, his back arched backwards and his head and arms hanging limply. In the blink of an eye, the blonde snapped his head up and slammed his fist into Zaku's face. The boy let out a muffled scream into Naruto's fist before flying backwards. Zaku bounced off the ground twice as he flew back before he was stopped when he smashed into the stone wall. Dust and tiny stones flew out from the wall, causing Hayate to gaze with shock and bewilderment.

Danzo's single eye was focused solely on the blonde now. Orochimaru leaned forward, a sadistic glint in his eyes, "Isn't that proof enough that this boy is Minato Namikaze's son? Our village's long lost Jinchuriki?" Danzo simply raised his hand to silence the Sannin. Orochimaru's smile vanished before he scoffed with agitation, leaning away from the Hokage.

"Wh-what just happened," Dosu questioned. Sakura had her hand over her mouth, shocked at the sight of her teammate being smashed through a solid stone wall. "That was Zaku's chakra tag. Even a Jonin couldn't recover that quickly after having it used on them!" Sakura remained silent, letting her hand drop to her side as she watched Naruto carefully.

Naruto's eyes zeroed in on the cloud of dust that consumed Zaku. The blonde quickly closed his eyes and groaned, trying to suppress most of the demon's chakra. Luckily he didn't raise a shroud like usual, using just the tiniest bit of the Kyuubi's chakra. When Naruto reopened his eyes, they were his normal deep blue, but his pupils were slit like a fox's. He doubted anyone would notice, especially since Zaku was more than likely knocked out.

"Slicing sound wave!" Naruto's eyes widened as a bolder came rocketing towards him. The blonde leaped into the air, spreading his legs apart as the rock flew beneath him, slamming into the opposite wall. Naruto landed on his feet and stared at the cloud of dust carefully. "Now look what you've done…" Naruto could hear footsteps approaching, and quickly readied himself. Zaku slowly emerged from the dust with his head lowered. Some dust trailed behind his body, looking almost as if it was trying to pull him back in. "I haven't used this in a long time…"

Dosu and Sakura's eyes now widened with shock before they looked at each other with the same, fearful look. "He didn't," Dosu murmured. The two snapped their heads back, staring at their teammate on the ground.

"I seriously hate using this though," Zaku continued. The boy snapped his head up, revealing his face to be covered with a series of flame looking tattoos over half his face. "Looks like you've left me no choice though Ryu."

"W-what the hell is that," Naruto questioned.

Zaku slowly began to lift up his arms. Naruto's eyes widened, but he quickly calmed himself once he realized he was out of Zaku's range. The black haired boy had his arms fully extended outward before he snapped his hands up. Zaku cried out as he unleashed a massive blast of wind from his hands. Naruto's eyes widened briefly before he was thrown back with incredible force by his opponent's blast. The blonde flipped head over heels before he spun around and planted his feet firmly into the ground. Naruto's feet grinded against the dirt as he pulled his arms across his chest. He stopped when he twisted his foot to the side and, with a forceful cry, swung his arms outward. The ground shook as a massive shockwave was unleashed. Zaku crossed his arms over his face to brace himself as he took the full force of Naruto's attack. The boy slid back at an alarming rate, but kept his feet planted on the ground. He was only stopped when his back touched the wall. Lowering his arms, Zaku smirked at his opponent's new, mysterious power.

Danzo shifted his eye over to Orochimaru who was visibly stunned by what he was witnessing. "Tell me Orochimaru, what was that you said about this boy being useless exactly? A failed experiment as I recall?"

"A-Anko," Orochimaru stammered. "She must've helped the boy to deal with the curse mark. But he shouldn't be able to control it like this! It's impossible!" Danzo huffed before turning back to the fight. This match was becoming more and more interesting by the second.

Anko's eyes narrowed and her mouth was pressed into a tight line. She raised her arm up, looking at the watch on her wrist, _'You got five minutes Zaku…'_

Zaku lifted his foot to move forward. Naruto tensed up. As soon as his foot hit the ground, Zaku vanished in a blur. Naruto's eyes narrowed, focusing on the blur coming at him. Zaku's figure stopped next to Naruto, fist cocked back and ready to go. Naruto lifted his arm up as Zaku's strike hit against his forearm. A massive shockwave was unleashed, rippling throughout Naruto's body and into the ground, causing it to shake violently. The blonde grabbed Zaku's arm and yanked him forward. The Jinchuriki screamed as he started to spin around, stepping towards the nearest wall. Finally, Naruto released Zaku, throwing the boy towards the stone wall with the speed of a bullet and the force of a wrecking ball. Dust and debris flew out of the wall upon impact. Naruto showed no expression, simply staring at the wall. Something caught the boy's eye as he looked down, seeing the dirt pushing upward. His eyes widened with the realization that Zaku was tunneling underground and quickly started moving backwards. The ground exploded upward as Zaku came flying towards Naruto. The black haired Genin screamed as he threw his palm forward, aiming at Naruto's head. The blonde jerked his head back, lifting himself off the ground as a gust of wind whooshing past him. A chunk of the wall, dangerously close to the front row spectators, was suddenly blown apart.

Dosu and Sakura snapped their heads towards the now destroyed chunk of the wall then rushed towards the spectators. Sakura knelt down to a few citizens that were thrown out of their seats, "Are you all okay?" The spectators groaned then nodded. Dosu's eyes were focused on his teammate as Sakura checked on the people

"You're getting out of hand with this Zaku," Dosu stated quietly.

Zaku threw his other hand forward, unleashing another tremendous amount of wind that smashed Naruto into the ground. The earth caved in under the boy's back, dipping him down into a newly formed crater. Zaku placed his hand on Naruto's chest, gripping his shirt tightly. The blonde looked at his opponent's hand then gasped as he stared into Zaku's now blood thirsty eyes. The black haired Genin cackled as he hurled Naruto across the stadium. Naruto bounced across the ground once, then twice, and then slammed into the wall. Zaku reached back, pulling out two kunai with a string of explosive tags on the end of each. The boy chuckled before hurling both the knives forward, using his slicing sound wave to give the weapons more momentum. The blades went into the cloud of dust and then set of a series of nearly a dozen explosions, turning the dust into a shroud of smoke. Zaku sneered madly, opening and then clenching his fists.

The explosions gently rocked the wall of the stadium, causing Sakura and Dosu to look in shock. Sakura got off the floor then rushed up to the railing, looking at the cloud of smoke and flame. "H-he didn't lose control already did he," Sakura asked.

"It's only been a minute," Dosu murmured in response. "He shouldn't be like this yet! Something's wrong!"

Danzo's tired looking eye focused on the cloud of smoke and then back at Zaku. Orochimaru looked at the Kage, noticing the faint curiosity in his eye. He was one of the few people who could notice that look in Danzo's eye. "That's another reason I dubbed him a failed experiment. He lacks control over the curse mark and goes into a savage, bloodthirsty rage."

"And that's the reason I don't give you more people to experiment on," Danzo hissed quietly.

"Danzo…" Orochimaru and the Hokage looked over at Hanzo. The Rain's leader had his unique eyes focused on the fight, not looking at either of the Konoha higher-ups. "Is there any chance that Orochimaru would want a few prisoners I have to experiment on?" Danzo narrowed his eye while Orochimaru gasped with surprise.

"Why would you make such a generous offer lord Hanzo?"

"This curse mark is…interesting if it can be controlled," Hanzo replied. "In your alliance so far I have one of the weaker military forces when compared to your own village. If I had even a battalion of shinobi with this mark I'd be able to stand on the same level as the rest of you, in military might of course." Danzo kept his eye focused on Hanzo for a moment. Amegakure's leader was one of Danzo's oldest and most trusted allies, but that didn't mean he was above the old Hokage's paranoia. Danzo looked back to the fight before replying.

"We'll see…" Hanzo nodded, focusing back on the fight.

Zaku's sneer vanished as he stared, almost absentmindedly, into the cloud of smoke. Before he knew it, Zaku was thrown back by a wave of wind that sent him flying across the stadium, bouncing and then sliding across the ground. Naruto was shown with his arms extended far out to the side, eyes red, wide, and focused angrily at Zaku. The Jinchuriki closed his eyes, concentrating on suppressing the demon within him before reopening his once again blue eyes. Zaku groaned as he got up, holding the side of his head, trying to control the power of his curse mark.

"Damn it," Zaku hissed, placing a hand over the mark on his shoulder.

"What's the matter," Naruto questioned, trying to keep his voice sounding normal. "Giving up already?" Zaku groaned, clutching his shoulder as sweat started coming down his face. The markings on his face started to light up like flames and spread across his face.

"Damn it," Zaku fell to his knees before looking up. "Anko sensei!"

In the stands, said Jonin shot out of her seat, heading towards the arena. The curse mark started spreading faster over Zaku's body. The boy screamed in agony as the mark started covering every inch of his body, changing the color of his skin even. Anko landed on the ground and began making a series of hand signs while rushing forward towards Zaku.

"Anko," Hayate shouted, moving to intercept the Jonin. "You can't be-," Anko jumped in the air, spun around and kicked Hayate across the face without losing a beat. She'd apologize later to the oblivious proctor, but now her main concern was Zaku.

"Sealing jutsu," Anko quickly bit her thumb, drawing a small amount of blood. Zaku screamed, his eyes widening as he glared at the approaching Jonin with an animalistic look in his eyes. Half of Zaku's face was darkened by the curse mark, and his eye changed colors as well, the iris being yellow and everything else around it turning black. Zaku threw his arm forward, attempting to strike Anko. The Jonin flipped over her student's strike, forming the last hand seal and smearing the blood from her thumb across her palm. She landed then slammed her palm on Zaku's curse mark and used her other hand to make a hand sign. "Serpent's seal!" Chakra pulsed under Anko's palm, causing Zaku to scream in pain again. The curse mark started to receded back to its origin, changing Zaku back to normal. As soon as the seal completely withdrew, Zaku collapsed to his hands and knees.

Hayate just got off the ground from Anko's earlier kick. He and Naruto both stared with confused and shocked looks over at Zaku and Anko. The black haired Genin panted heavily and then looked up at Naruto. Zaku smirked as he panted heavily, "Yeah, okay, I give up."

"The winner is Ryu," Hayate announced. The crowd cheered at the conclusion.

Naruto blinked, his pupils back to their normal rounded shape. The blonde laughed bashfully then waved to the audience. "Hey." Naruto turned to the voice, seeing Zaku being carried with his arm over Anko's shoulder. "Good match. Sorry about throwing you into the wall, trying to blow you up, and slamming you into the ground." Naruto laughed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's no problem," the blonde replied. "Just warn me next time you have something like that curse mark that makes you go crazy." Zaku smiled then extended his free hand out to Naruto. The blonde smiled then grasped his opponent's hand and shook firmly.

"Sensei, take me to my team," Zaku demanded with a tone of authority. "I wish to say my final goodbyes to Dosu!" Anko batted Zaku in the back of the head, causing him to laugh a bit.

"Idiot," Anko murmured before walking towards the exit. Naruto smiled then waved before they turned around. The Jinchuriki jumped then cheered again as he headed towards the stands where Neji and Kiba were. As they walked through the stadium, Anko looked to Zaku, "What happened?"

"I don't know," Zaku murmured, knowing she referred to his loss of control. "As soon as I traded blows with him, my curse mark just took over. It's like there was something about him that snapped something inside me." Anko remained silent, staring straight ahead. Zaku moved his eyes over to his teacher and then back to the ground. "I'm sorry sensei…"

"It's not your fault kid," Anko replied softly. "You shouldn't have been given such an unstable burden to begin with." Zaku's head moved to Anko with a questioning look. The Jonin had an upset look on her face, and in her eye was burning fury.

"Don't," Zaku snapped, realizing what she was planning behind that scowl. "You can't go pissing off Orochimaru for me. It was my fault for activating the curse mark to begin with, not his!" Anko remained silent, not even glancing at Zaku. The boy sighed, lowering his head to the ground. He knew that Anko would confront her former master regardless.

Outside, Danzo tried to stall and wait for Sasuke again, but to no avail. He use an excuse of checking on the audience members Zaku almost injured to stall for time and trying to patch up a few pieces of the stadium from the last fight, but even those excuses didn't last forever. He didn't want to disqualify Sasuke, but if this last match concluded and Sasuke wasn't here, he'd have to forfeit automatically.

"Lord Hokage," Sasori called out, leaning forward in his throne. Danzo looked over, seeing the Kazekage with a smug look on his face. "Could we get things moving please? I wish to see my Gaara's match." Danzo huffed, looking back at the vacant arena. "It shouldn't take more than a few seconds I'm sure," Sasori continued, leaning back in his seat.

Danzo never cared much for Sasori. He was just a means to an end, and that end was getting Sunagakure within his grip. The only reason his alliance with Sasori was worth anything was due to Orochimaru and the puppeteer's friendship.

"Very well, begin the next match," Danzo murmured.

As soon as Hayate got the message, he called for Gaara and Dosu. Suna's Jinchuriki and Dosu stood across from one another, the latter hunched over and the former standing tall with his arms crossed. "Dosu Kinuta, Gaara, are you both ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Dosu muttered. Gaara simply nodded.

"Very well: BEGIN!"

**

* * *

And that's a wrap for this chapter. Next chapter, SHIT'LL HIT THE FANS! And then after that SHIT'LL CONTINUE TO HIT THE FANS! And after that…well, it'll stop hitting the fans. BUT THEN IT'LL HIT THE FANS AGAIN! And by fans I mean you people reading this now. Muahahahaha! But I'm joking, so no worries. Well, anywho, hope you enjoyed the fights, and I hope you enjoyed the twists and turns in the battles. If not, don't shoot me. Shoot the person who reviewed before you. No, wait…that'll discourage people from reviewing. Shoot someone who makes you angry. No wait…that'll get me in trouble with the authorities. Well…just do something that doesn't involve shooting me. Bye now! Leave a review on your way out!**


	16. New Dawn

Dosu shot back in an intractable blur, causing Gaara to gasp with shock. The masked Genin flipped around, landing against the wall before darting off like a bullet along the wall. Gaara scowled then watched the boy as best as he could. Dosu rounded across the wall, dirt flying up as he charged. Gaara grunted as he threw up a wall of sand between him and his attacker. Dosu threw his arm forward, the device he wore or his arm hitting hard against the wall of sand. The Jinchuriki closed his hand. Spikes jutted out of the wall just after Dosu shot back. The boy slid across the ground then threw a kunai with three paper bombs attached forward. The blade hit the sand wall, bouncing off as though it hit steel, before exploding. Dosu watched carefully before a pillar of sand shot at him. The masked Genin ducked and then launched himself to the side. The pillar swung to the side, chasing Dosu. The Genin jumped over the sand as it smashed through the wall. Dosu landed, eyes still focused on Gaara's sand wall. The smoke cleared, revealing a few parts of his wall having small flames burning on it. Dosu smirked beneath his mask and huffed. The boy snapped his eyes to the side before rushing to his left as more sand came after him. Dosu got close to Gaara, causing the Jinchuriki to look to his side with alarm. The Konoha Genin socked Gaara across the face, causing him to stumble back. Dosu moved up, landing two more punches before Gaara screamed, his sand finally catching up to defend him. Dosu spun around and slammed his right forearm into another wall of hardened sand. The Genin placed his hand against the wall and sprung back before more spikes could impale him. Dosu grunted, slipping a bit, but recovered as he rolled back onto his feet. Gaara's eyes narrowed with anger, enraged by the fact that this nobody managed to land a hit on him.

"I haven't forgotten what you and your team did to me," Gaara stated with a low, venomous tone. "Your team and those other three were the first opponents I've ever had that made me bleed." Gaara's sand started floating around him, swirling softly in the wind. "I. Don't. Like. To. BLEED!" Dosu's eyes widened as the sand suddenly expanded, blocking out even the sunlight in the stadium.

"Oh you've gotta be kidding me," Dosu murmured.

Sasori smirked as he watched his little Jinchuriki, "I'd say it's game over…"

"GIANT SAND TSUNAMI!"

The sand flew forward in a massive tidal wave. Dosu started strutting backwards before he turned and fully sprinted away. Hayate quickly shot towards the wall and ran to get behind Gaara and his jutsu. Dosu used his newly acquired super speed to outrun the colossal tidal wave. The boy closed in on the wall, but didn't lose a step as he started running up it. The sand wave hit the ground and against the wall with a thunderous sound that rocked most of the audience in their seats. Dosu sprinted all the way up the length of the wall before stopping. The boy crouched and closed his eyes to concentrate. The sand started snaking its way up the walls, slowly at first, but then started racing towards Dosu. The boy's eyes snapped open before he used a massive amount of chakra to launch himself forward. Like a speeding bullet, Dosu shot between Gaara's sand and cleared the entire distance of the arena with his arm pulled back. Gaara's eyes widened with shock, knowing he wouldn't be able to recall his sand back fast enough to defend him. Dosu screamed as loud as he could before socking Gaara across the face. The momentum that Dosu was going at prevented him from stopping. Instead, the boy slammed into the ground then rolled across the ground over and over again until a wall stopped him. Gaara bounced off his neck, then off his chest, and then landed on his back from the blow. Dosu quickly sprung to his feet, but winced and doubled down slightly in pain.

In the stands, Might Guy threw his head back and laughed, "That's it Dosu! Let the power of youth explode in you!"

"Guy sensei," Lee murmured. The Jonin looked down at his young look-alike. "For that type of speed Dosu would've had to open an additional chakra gate correct? He could only open the first in such a short amount of time of training. With that kind of speed he just used…" Guy cupped his hand over his chin and hummed softly.

"You're right Lee. Dosu is pushing himself past his limits…" The two looked at each other with solemn looks. In the blink of an eye, the two of them both leaned forward over the railings.

"GO DOSU," they shouted in unison, "PUSH FORWARD WITH THE POWER OF YOUTH!"

Dosu groaned, his eyes showing an exasperated look, _'I'm starting to wish I never trained with those idiots. Regardless, opening another chakra gate did more damage to me than I thought. My body isn't use to such stress yet.'_ The Genin groaned as he shook he stretched his neck out, rolling his shoulders back. _'I'd better go back to just the one. I still have another plan in mind.'_

Gaara panted heavily. Mostly he was seething with rage. His sand rushed back to him like servants to their master. The Jinchuriki snapped his wide, blood thirsty eyes towards Dosu. The Genin noticed blood trickling down the corner of Gaara's mouth as he rose to his feet. Gaara rubbed his thumb to his lip and then looked down. The boy's jaw tightened as he clenched his fist and snapped his gaze up at Dosu.

"The second time…the second time I've been shown my own blood! I'm going to tear you open and then flood your insides with my sand and tear you from the inside out!" Gaara's sand began swirling violently to match the Jinchuriki's rage. Dosu blinked, eyes wide with absolute horror.

"That's a bit extreme don't you think," the young Genin questioned with a shrill tone.

Gaara screamed as he threw his arms forward, launching two waves of sand forward. Dosu ducked then rushed between them. Due to the newfound stress on his body, Dosu was a bit slower, but still fast enough to slip by Gaara's defenses. The Jinchuriki threw his arms across his body. The waves of sand on either side of Dosu collapsed inward. The Genin sprung into the air, spinning sideways as he threw a pair of kunai. Gaara scowled, jerking his head to the side while keeping his eyes focused on Dosu. The boy's eyes snapped to the side as more sand came to swipe him like a fly. Dosu barely managed to twist his body around, placing his right forearm against the sand. He slid down it a bit before vaulting himself off the sand that soon tried to crush him. Gaara growled, his eyes following Dosu as he landed against the wall.

"What're you doing Dosu," Sakura asked herself in a whisper. "You're not going to get anywhere if you just keep dodging…"

"Hey!" Sakura turned to the sound of the voice calling out, seeing Anko carrying Zaku walking over. "How's he doing," Zaku asked.

"He managed to get a few good hits in, and managed to evade a large scale jutsu of Gaara's," Sakura replied. "But other than that he just keeps dodging his attacks. He's not going to get anywhere unless he moves in and attacks."

"Oh you know Dosu, he's always got something planned," Zaku stated with a grin. "That's what makes us all balance out. Dosu's the brains, I'm the schemer, you're the support and more often than not the muscle." Sakura gave a questioning look, wondering if Zaku was serious about the muscle remark.

"If there's one thing I've learned it's that you kids like to plan for your matches ahead of time," Anko chimed in. The Jonin gave a brief look to the Genin hanging off her shoulder before staring forward with narrowed eyes. "Well, most of you do anyway." Zaku's eyes snapped towards his sensei, knowing that remark was directed towards him. "Dosu was the one who got you all into the mindset that preparing for a battle is more important than just fighting it."

"Hey, in my defense all I knew about my opponent is that he's Sakura's boyfriend!" Sakura sighed, restraining herself from hitting her friend. "Other than that I didn't know he used wind style jutsus or had some crazy hidden super strength. I was fighting blind!"

"You'd be surprised how often you do that against your opponents," Anko muttered. Zaku groaned before snapping his eyes back to the fight in defeat. "I'm sure Dosu has to have a plan cooking up in that of his head."

Dosu spun under another one of Gaara's attacks, panting heavily as he stared at his opponent. The excessive use of an opened chakra gate wore him out quicker than he thought. Then again, opening a second gate probably had something to do with it too. Gaara noticed this sluggish behavior, using tactics that would overwhelm Dosu. Despite this, he found it rather difficult to pin the Konoha shinobi down, even with all of his sand.

"Don't know how much longer I can keep this up," Dosu murmured. "Gotta make this next one count for something!"

Dosu shot forward, kicking up dirt behind him. Gaara screamed, launching his sand forward. The Konoha Genin dove between a small opening in the sand, rolling forward onto his feet as he continued onward. Gaara's eyes widened as he flung his hand out. A wave of sand moved to trip the Genin's feet out from under him. Dosu hopped up, twisted his body around before throwing his right arm out to snap him around straight. He closed the distance to Gaara a second later, throwing his fist across the boy's face. Dosu continued his brawl, punching Gaara across the other side of the face, then in the stomach, an uppercut, and then a backwards twist kick to the chest. Gaara was thrown back, slamming onto his back. Dosu pulled his sleeve back, fully unveiling the device on his arm before he shot forward. Gaara's head snapped up as he threw his arm forward. To Dosu's shock, sand soon came up from behind and started wrapping around his arm. Dosu turned his body, gasping with shock as he started to pull his arm back.

"SAND COFFIN!" Dosu flew back as the sand pressurized. The boy hit the ground, rolling across the dirt before stopping and snapping his head towards Gaara. The Jinchuriki slowly turned his venomous face towards Dosu. The boy turned, revealing he had both arms fully intact. "What? Impossible!"

"Actually it's quite possible," Dosu replied. The boy pulled back his sleeve, revealing his now naked arm to Gaara. "You crushed my device, but not my arm. It's simple enough to just yank my arm out of the Melody Arm."

"So, you're without your main advantage in battle, and your speed is pushing your body to its limits."

"Is this the part where you tell me to give up," Dosu asked as he pulled out something small from his belt. Gaara narrowed his eyes, seeing a tiny pill between Dosu's fingers. "I hope you're familiar with the concept of a food pill." The boy pulled his mask out from his face then dropped the pill in. The mask snapped back on his nose, followed by a light crunching noise.

Gaara scowled then raised his arm to attack. Dosu vanished before the sand could even move to get him. The Jinchuriki gasped with shock as he saw Dosu standing in front of him, lowered to the ground with a murderous look in his eyes. Dosu shot his fist up, hitting Gaara's chin. The boy was lifted off the ground before he looked down, seeing Dosu vanish in a blur once more. Dosu reappeared behind Gaara, throwing two swift and powerful blows at the Jinchuriki's back. Gaara flew forward, slamming face first into the dirt. Dosu vanished again, slamming his knees into Gaara's spine. The Jinchuriki cried out in pain. Dosu's eyes shifted over before the boy vanished, reappearing on the other side of the arena. Gaara screamed with fury, his sand spiraling around him. A sphere formed around Gaara as he slammed his palms together. The Jinchuriki was now encased in a dome of sand. Dosu narrowed his eyes, curiously examining the orb.

"Well…that's unexpected."

* * *

Sasori narrowed his eyes with anger. Kabuto pushed his glasses up his nose then leaned towards the Kazekage, "My lord, perhaps it's time we restrain Gaara before he gets out of control."

"Silence," Sasori hissed. "The seal is holding and Gaara is still in control. I want to see where the little brat thinks he's going with this…"

* * *

Sakura tightened her grip on the rails, grinding her teeth together nervously. "Dosu…give up. There's nothing you can do at this point."

"I'd hate to say it, but I think your right," Anko murmured. "Whatever Gaara is cooking up it doesn't look good."

"You guys have no faith," Zaku boasted. "Dosu'll most likely pull some miraculous stunt out of his ass. He's done it before remember?" Zaku smiled to his teammate and sensei before staring down at the fight. _'I hope so at least…'_

* * *

Dosu tilted his head to one side and then the other as he examined the barrier around Gaara. _'Is he stalling for time or is he planning something?'_ The fight seemed to come to a halt as Dosu didn't even want to try and get close to the barrier of sand Gaara encased himself in. "Maybe now is a good time to tell you something Gaara," Dosu spoke loudly.

Inside the sand barrier, Gaara sat cross legged, his hands pressed together, chanting something to himself.

"You noticed at the beginning of this fight I did nothing but smack my Melody Arm against your sand? There was a reason for that."

"I'll tear him open," Gaara whispered. "I'll feed you with his blood, with his mangled corpse. Would you like that…mother?"

"I knew that you'd most likely put sand in your ear or something to prevent me from using my jutsu against you, so I decided to go an alternate route. Before the battle I readjusted my Melody Arm so that every time I would hit my target, or his wall of sand, something would come out of it. In this case, I filled up my Melody Arm with something special. Something I think you might be interested in knowing."

"His death will feed our power," Gaara murmured. "Soon he'll die and we'll be satisfied…"

Dosu took a kunai out from his rear pouched and spun it around in the air before catching it by the handle. The Genin attached his last paper bomb to the blade before turning towards Gaara. "My Melody Arm…" crouching down, Dosu pulled his arm back ready to throw, "Was full of gunpowder…"

Gaara's eyes snapped open with shock. He had been hearing Dosu the entire time, but paid no attention to him. An image of Gaara crushing his opponent's Melody Arm flashed through his head. The Jinchuriki looked around the darkness, barley picking up the faint scent of the gunpowder.

"I win," Dosu stated simply as he hurled the kunai forward.

Gaara screamed, trying to throw his sand out as far as possible. The redhead quickly realized that if this happened, and Dosu's explosive tag went off he'd still be in a world of trouble. Regardless, Gaara pushed his sand away just before the blade struck. The paper bomb went off on impact, igniting the gunpowder and setting off a series of smaller explosions.

Dosu sighed with relief, staring at the cloud of black smoke in front of him. "Of course if the gunpowder was sparsely spread throughout the sand, all I'd do is set off a bunch of tiny fires, not explosions. This is why I used my chakra to pack the gunpowder together in tight, compact balls so I could set of a series of explosions. Much more effective in my opinion, but I'll let the proctor be the judge." Dosu turned to Hayate who was gapping with awe at the cloud of smoke.

* * *

Sasori's eyes were wide with pure shock. The Kazekage didn't even notice he was almost leaning _out_ of his seat. His prized Jinchuriki had just been beaten but some kid he's never even heard of before.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes on Dosu. He knew the boy was smart for his age, but this was ridiculous. First it was the failed Zaku Abumi, revealing he had more control over his curse mark than ever before, and now Dosu has shown the capabilities of defeating Suna's Jinchuriki? The Sannin was questioning whether letting these boys go was the right choice or not.

Danzo hummed lowly with intrigue. While he didn't expect Dosu to actually win this fight, the very fact he was able to learn how to open two of the Eight Gates in a week was impressive, and now blowing up an allied village's Jinchuriki was an added bonus. While it was a blow to the alliance's power, Danzo still didn't enjoy the fact Sasori had a Jinchuriki under his belt. Still, the seal would no doubt keep the One Tail alive long enough for Sasori to transfer it to a new host. If need be, Danzo knew Orochimaru most likely had some pour soul set off to the side that Sasori could use.

* * *

"Th-the winner is-,"

"GUAAAAH!" Dosu, Hayate, and the eyes of everyone in the stadium snapped towards the cloud of smoke. A strange claw made of sand broke through the smoke towards Dosu. The Genin quickly dove to the side, rolling across the ground as the claw slammed into the wall of the stadium.

"You're kidding," Dosu murmured. The claw retracted into the smoke. A second later, the smoke was thrown outward, revealing Gaara with cracks all over his body. "Oh come on! How did you-,"

"Before the battle," Gaara replied with a venomous tone. "I saw how your pink haired teammate prepared for her battle. I also remembered about how well your team was prepared in the second stage. I didn't want to take any chances with you. Before I came down here to fight I encased myself in my sand armor. You said your gunpowder was packed together with your chakra. So is my armor. Nothing, not even the loosed grain of sand, can get through my armor unless I add it."

"Which you didn't…" Dosu groaned before falling on his rear, using his hands to hold himself up. "I give up." Hayate whirled around towards Dosu. Gaara's rage faded, expecting as much after that last attack. "I got nothing left. You withstood everything I prepared for and with the Melody Arm destroyed, and the excessive use of the Eight Gates my body is running on empty. You win, I lose."

"The winner is Gaara," Hayate announced.

The crowd cheered for the spectacular fight. Despite the fact Dosu just gave up, the crowd loved every moment of the nail-biting spectacle. They had hardly expected such an amazing battle, seeing as how one of them was a Jinchuriki.

Gaara turned then headed towards the exit without saying another word to Dosu. The young Genin sighed before standing back up and heading towards the opposite exit.

Guy grinned, his hand holding his chin as he watched Dosu leave. "Guy sensei," Lee questioned. "He did not let the flames of youth explode did he?"

"No Lee. But he had no choice. There are some risks not worth taking in life. Dosu made the right choice by giving up against Gaara. If he didn't, I have a feeling he'd be a stain on the stadium walls right now."

"I understand Guy sensei! I will try my hardest to make the correct decisions during my next battle, just like Dosu!"

Guy boomed with laughter before putting his hand on Lee's shoulder, "Very good Lee! But with the flames of youth, there's no reason you should lose your next battle!"

"Right Guy sensei! After the Chunin Exams I will go and train myself for two days straight! And then I'll be on a date with the lovely Sakura-chan!" Tears of joy streamed down Lee's face. He still couldn't believe he was going on a date with his longtime crush.

* * *

Naruto's brow was raised with surprise. He'd been surprised half the match, regardless of Dosu's final trump card. He was glad Dosu surrendered, lest he go up against him. "Well," Kiba exclaimed, looking towards Neji. "Looks like it's you and Uchiha boy left. And who knows, he might not show up!"

"Wouldn't that be my luck," Neji muttered bitterly. He was annoyed by the fact he was supposed to fight first, but now he had to fight last. "They could just disqualify Sasuke and let me fight this Tobi guy, but _no_. Heaven forbid they do something that upsets the little Uchiha brat." The two spiky haired rogues looked at one another before staring up at Neji. "Naruto, are you keeping an eye on Hanabi?"

"Yep," the blonde replied, looking over in the far corner to his right. "She's still sitting there with her sister and dad."

"Just remember, when she starts to leave you're going to go meet her. Kiba go with him just in case."

"Right, explain why we're going again," the brunette requested.

"Naruto needs to use a sealing jutsu on Hanabi's curse mark before we do whatever Yahiko's plan is, otherwise the Hyuga Clan will just use it to track and slow us down. If we can use a sealing jutsu, then we can get her back home where we can better deal with it."

"So why am I going," Kiba asked.

"To be my watch dog," Naruto answered with a grin. Kiba snapped his head towards Naruto, growling lowly in anger.

* * *

Hanabi had her head lowered, occasionally glancing over at the three rogue Genin. Did they want _her_ to make the first move to leave? Yahiko told her to find them before third stage ended, but when specifically?

"Father." Hanabi shifted her eyes to Hinata. Hiashi looked to his eldest daughter with an impatient look in his eyes. "May I please go and say a few words to my…former opponent?"

"Just don't get into a fight before his match," Hiashi replied, looking forward. Hinata smirked then stood up.

"Come on Hanabi." The youngest sister opened her mouth to speak, but remained silent before following her sister.

"Sexy bitch, five o' clock," Kiba muttered softly.

"Sexy," Neji questioned.

"Hizashi," Hinata spoke. Neji rolled his eyes before turning around, along with his spiky haired comrades. "I just wanted to say good luck before your match with Sasuke."

"That's…nice…of you?" Neji was wondering if the Hyuga heiress had hit her head or something.

"Actually it's kind of pointless," Hinata stated. "You're just going to lose against Sasuke anyway. I went easy on you. I underestimated your abilities because you were blind. But I get the feeling you were holding back on me too. You were hiding something if I'm not mistaken." Neji twitched slightly, barely enough for Hinata to notice.

Hanabi's eyes widened, her fear growing. What if they thought she ratted them out? They'd leave her in the village, or they even might try to kill her. She had to make sure they didn't think she told her sister or her father. Hanabi took a small step behind Hinata then shook her head. Naruto and Kiba noticed this, but Neji couldn't, due to the fact that activating his Byakugan was a risk. Naruto barely nodded to her before looking back at Hinata. Hanabi mentally sighed with relief before stepping forward.

"I don't think it'd be wise to hold back against Sasuke, otherwise you might end up being killed."

"Thanks for the warning, but I'll be just fine on my own," Neji replied. "And don't waste your time with paranoia and delusions." Hinata narrowed her eyes and stiffened her jaw. The heiress simply shrugged and started to walk away.

"Suit yourself, I'm just trying to help. Come on Hanabi."

The eldest sister walked away, but Hanabi gave a pleading glance to her saviors. Neji nodded towards the girl then jerked his head to the side. To anyone else it would look like a 'hey girl, go away now,' but Hanabi looked to where Neji jerked his head. Naruto looked at her with hardened blue eyes. Hanabi turned and followed after her sister, taking a mental note to find or follow Naruto.

* * *

Danzo scowled angrily. Granted it had only been around five minute since the end of the last match, but he still couldn't wait on Sasuke forever. He looked over at Yagura, the only village leader not in his inner circle. Though the Kage's expression seemed calm, Danzo could tell by the way he was gripping at the arms of his chair that he was growing in anger. Kisame leaned forward and whispered something to Yagura. Danzo narrowed his eyes as the Mizukage whispered something back to him. After a few seconds, Yagura looked over at Danzo.

"Start the next match," Yagura ordered.

"Sasuke Uchiha hasn't arrived yet," Danzo replied.

"Have this Hizashi fight Tobi then. Disqualify Sasuke and get the matches going! This boy is trying my patience!" Danzo lowered his eye to the floor. He wanted a chance for Sasuke in this year's Chunin Exams, but he and Kakashi both knew what would happen if they were late. Danzo rose from his seat then approached the railing.

The audience soon went from a dull roar to a soft whisper, wondering what their leader would say to them. "In light of Sasuke Uchiha's prolonged absence," Danzo spoke with a loud voice. "I regret to say that I have no choice but to-,"

A cloud of smoke suddenly went up in the center of the stadium. All eyes snapped down, seeing Sasuke and Kakashi standing in the center of the smoke. Danzo narrowed his eyes, burning with rage at this point. "Sorry we're late," Kakashi said, "Just had to fine tune one last jutsu."

"Start the next match," Danzo told Hayate before sitting back in his seat.

"You were supposed to disqualify him," Yagura seethed.

"He arrived before I could do so," Danzo replied calmly. Yagura's jaw tightened, clutching at the arms of his seat stronger.

* * *

Sakura stared down at Sasuke. Zaku and Anko looked at the Uchiha, then to Sakura before they heard approaching footsteps. The looked over, seeing Dosu approaching them. "Hey buddy," Zaku exclaimed. "That was a hell of a match you had!"

"Too bad I didn't win it," Dosu murmured. "And it's her fault for being so damned prepared! If she had been an idiot like you, Gaara wouldn't have become so paranoid and I could've won that match!"

"Why does everyone think I'm an idiot for not preparing against an opponent I virtually know NOTHING ABOUT?"

"Sorry Dosu," Sakura apologized, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Nah, it's fine. I just wish I could've won that fight!"

"It was still impressive," Anko replied. "I wouldn't be surprised if you became a Chunin regardless of the results of that fight." Dosu huffed, smiling under his mask. He had no reason to doubt his sensei before.

* * *

"Begin," Hayate snapped to Sasuke and Neji.

The Uchiha shot forward, throwing his foot forward. Neji jerked his body to the side, sliding around Sasuke's flying kick. The raven haired boy slid across the ground then charged forward. Sasuke threw a series of punches forward which Neji either dodged or swatted out of the way with ease. Neji finally started to return the blows, which Sasuke dodged or blocked with great efficiency. The two continued the dance of taijutsu, neither landing a blow on the other.

Hiashi's eyes watched the blind boy carefully. "You see father," Hinata said. "Those movements have to be based off the Hyuga Clan's!"

"It doesn't mean he's Neji Hyuga though," Hiashi muttered. "There are many people who've tried to copy the Hyuga Clan in many aspects. Some are more successful than others, but nobody has copied it perfectly." Hinata scowled, but remained silent as she watched the match continue.

Sasuke sprung back, performing a series of hand signs quickly before shooting a series of fireballs at Neji. The Hyuga in disguise scowled before pacing backwards quickly. The fireballs hit around him, but none directly hit him. Neji sprung backwards, flipping head over heels before landing on the wall. Sasuke reached behind his back then threw one handful of shuriken forward before spinning around to gain extra momentum for the second throw. Neji shot off the wall, twisting around in midair as the blades struck the wall. Sasuke ran towards where his opponent was going to land, attempting a sneak attack. Neji landed a second earlier than Sasuke expected, and the two began trading blows again.

* * *

Yahiko sat in the stands, watching Neji carefully. He looked towards the other rogues hiding throughout the crowd. The time was coming closer for his plan. He looked over at Itachi, sitting next to Hana. As soon as Yahiko gave the signal, the group would reveal themselves and their intentions to the world.

Jiraiya looked over in Yahiko's direction. The man's orange hair was easy to spot, only if you were looking for him though. So far there was no reason for Jiraiya to assume Yahiko was going to spring the signal anytime soon. The hooded Sannin looked over to the man at his left, Higure Haruno. Sitting next to him was intentional, thought Jiraiya didn't believe Higure would spring up to fight for Konoha. He retired for a reason, and it wasn't entirely to take care of the newborn Sakura.

* * *

Hanabi watched the match carefully, seeing the obvious stalemate. She wondered if Neji was prolonging the match for her benefit. She looked over at her sister and father, both of whom were engrossed in the fight. Hanabi leaned forward, looking only at Hiashi. "Excuse me, father?" The Hyuga Clan leader looked over at his daughter. "May I please go use the lady's room?"

"You may Hanabi," Hiashi replied. Without another word, the Clan leader looked back to the fight. Hanabi bowed her head and got out of her seat. She stared at Naruto and Kiba, who immediately started to walk through the crowd.

Hanabi quickly moved up the stairs, eager for her chance to escape her horrible fate. Despite her pleas to Naruto and Neji, Hanabi would miss her father a bit. He didn't treat her like dirt like Hinata did. But just the fact that he branded his own daughter with a curse mark, and allowed Hanabi to be treated like dirt, and hardly paid any attention to her. All things considered, he wasn't the worst father in history. Still, Hanabi couldn't take it anymore. She wanted out.

In the halls of the stadium, Hanabi found Naruto and Kiba. "Over here," Naruto called out softly. Hanabi quickly rushed towards them, stopping in front of the spiky haired pair. "I'm going to put a sealing jutsu around your mark. It'll only work for twenty four hours before disappearing, but that'll be more than enough time to get you somewhere we can do a more permanent solution."

"Like you did for Neji," Hanabi questioned.

"Right, now let's go somewhere less out in the open." Hanabi nodded then followed Naruto deeper into the stadium with Kiba watching the rear.

* * *

Gaara sat in the corner of a room used for contestants. He forced his siblings out when they tried patronizing him. Gaara knew he only won that match because Dosu was out of tricks. They knew that Gaara could've just as easily lost that match. He got lucky. The door slowly creaked open. Gaara didn't even want to look at whoever it was, "Go away…"

"Gaara," a dark voice murmured. The Jinchuriki looked up, seeing a man wearing an orange swirl mask with a single eye-hole and a long black coat.

"Who're you," Gaara questioned. The man made no response as he closed the door. Gaara's eyes flashed briefly before the masked man was surrounded by sand. "Answer…" The man simply laughed, throwing his head back. Gaara huffed before closing his hand into a fist, pressurizing the sand around the man's body. Or so he thought.

"Gaara the Jinchuriki," the man continued. Gaara's eyes widened with shock as the man simply walked through his sand coffin. "You're going to serve a small purpose of mine…" Gaara raised his hand, but in the blink of an eye, it was seized by Tobi. Gaara growled, staring right in Tobi's eye-hole. That proved to be a mistake. A Sharingan flared, putting Gaara under a genjutsu. The Jinchuriki's eyes fluttered softly before groaning, hanging between consciousness and darkness. "Time to ignite the flames of war…"

* * *

Sasuke jumped back as Neji struck the empty air. The raven haired boy landed, keeping his eyes fixated on his opponent. The whole match had been annoying Sasuke to no end. He was using taijutsu and ninjutsu to try and hit his opponent, but nothing was working. All this kid was using was taijutsu, and he was on par with Sasuke.

"I guess I'll play that card," Sasuke whispered to himself. "Neji Hyuga!" The Hyuga in disguise gasped with shock, sending the rest of the crowd into confusion.

Hinata sneered, gleeful at the fact that Sasuke took her words to heart. A few days before, Hinata shared her theory with Sasuke, and told him to try and expose him by removing that headband to reveal the Hyuga Clan's curse mark.

Yahiko scowled with fury, threatening to give the signal. He stopped himself however, deciding to see how this would play out first. Yahiko could practically feel his group's eyes on him as he eased back into his seat.

"I know who you are," Sasuke replied. "In your match against Hinata, your cousin, you used the Gentle Fist." Neji scowled slightly, but remained silent. "Then you closed your hand into an actual fist to try and disguise it."

"You have no proof," Neji snapped, despite the fact it was true.

"Show us what's under that headband," Sasuke ordered. "The mark on your forehead will be all the proof I need." Neji's lips pressed into a hard line as Sasuke simply smirked.

* * *

Hanabi whimpered, trying her best not to cry out. Naruto's hand gently lied on top of Hanabi's forehead, but the jutsu itself put an enormous amount of pressure on the person. Despite this, Naruto was actually impressed at how well Hanabi was taking it. "You're almost done," Naruto replied softly, trying to sooth the writhing girl. "Just hang in there Hanabi."

"We got trouble," a voice called out. Naruto glanced up, seeing Kiba rushing towards him before focusing back on Hanabi. "Sasuke called Neji out on his identity!" Naruto cringed, trying to keep himself focused on the sealing jutsu.

"Shut up Kiba, for one second okay? We're almost done Hanabi." The girl cracked open one eye, tears forcing their way out of the corners of her eyes. "I know it hurts, but we're almost done."

"Naruto, we've got to get ready to go," Kiba shouted. "If we don't then we're screwed!"

"Just a little longer," Naruto told Hanabi. The blonde snapped his head around to Kiba, "And you, leave me alone for just another minute please!" Kiba scoffed before turning to keep watch.

* * *

Sasuke stood across from Neji, a smirk plastered on his face. He had him. The results of this match no longer mattered. Revealing the only rogue Hyuga in history would be more than enough to bump Sasuke up to Chunin. Even if the judges didn't agree, Danzo would find a way to promote him after this.

"Fine," Neji replied.

Sasuke's smug look turned into an expression of shock. Neji reached up, snaking his fingers under his headband. In one motion, he removed the headband from his face. Sasuke's eyes widened with shock. Neji's forehead was bare, vacant of any type of curse mark. Sasuke's idea suddenly backfired in his face.

"Satisfied," Neji questioned. Sasuke scowled, realizing at that moment that his opponent had his eyes closed.

"Open your eyes," Sasuke ordered.

"I'm blind," Neji reminded. Sasuke growled as he launched himself forward. The last thing that he'd allow was to be made a fool of in front of half of Konoha.

Sasuke tackled Neji, both of them grunting and screaming as they tried to overpower the other. Sasuke managed to pin Neji to the ground before he used his thumbs to try and forced his opponent's eyes open. Neji grabbed Sasuke by the wrists, trying to remove his thumbs from his eyes. Sasuke sneered, opening Neji's eyes halfway. The disguised Hyuga managed to lift his lower body up, hooking his feet under Sasuke's arms. The raven haired boy looked down for a moment with confusion before he was flung off Neji. The Hyuga quickly rolled backwards, moving to put his headband over his eyes. Suddenly, someone grabbed his arm firmly in place.

"Neji Hyuga," Hayate muttered with disbelief. "I barely saw it, but I know a Byakugan when I see it." Neji scowled, knowing that Sasuke had revealed more than half of his eyes. Sasuke rushed forward, grinning madly at his victory.

'_I'm sorry,'_ Neji thought to himself. The boy struck two fingers into Hayate's wrist. A surge pulsed through the proctor's arm, causing him to cry out in pain and release Neji. The young Hyuga lowered his body and extended his arms. Veins began to pop out around his eyes. He had no choice. A Jonin saw it, and he couldn't fight against Hayate and Sasuke both. Neji's eyes snapped open, revealing his active Byakugan. Sasuke noticed this and quickly tried to stop himself. "Rotation!" Neji spun around, summoning a chakra barrier that hit Hayate and Sasuke, throwing them both back. Neji stopped, looking at the Genin and Jonin that were now far away from him.

Without sparing a single second, Danzo rose from his seat, his eye wide with fury. "SEIZE HIM!"

Nearly half of the shinobi in the stadium, ranging from Chunin to ANBU, shot out of their seats, moving towards Neji. The young Genin looked up with terror. The number of shinobi nearly blocked out the sun from above. Suddenly, a figure landed before Neji, causing the young Hyuga to look forward with shock. The familiar long, red hair offered Neji a new world of relief. Nagato snapped his head up, Rinnengan shining before he threw his arms up into the air.

"Shinra Tensei!" An invisible force shot out from Nagato's body, sending the attacking Konoha shinobi flying. They slammed into the wall, on the roofs, the rails, the ground, and every other surface in the stadium. Nagato looked back over his shoulder, "You alright kid?" Neji nodded once, a smile of relief coming over his face.

"Who dares," Danzo's voice boomed. Nagato and Neji snapped their heads up at the seething Kage.

Yahiko stood up suddenly, cupping his hands around his mouth, "NOW!" The other rogues around Yahiko did the same, shouting all across the stadium.

Confusion and alarm filled the crowd before they started screaming with terror. The rogues threw off their hooded cloaks, revealing different uniforms all consisting of blood red clouds on black. Higure's eyes darted all around the stadium before the man sitting next to him rose up. His green eyes looked at the man with shock before he pulled down his hood, revealing a wide grin and a wild mane of white hair. Higure gapped with disbelief as Jiraiya simply smiled down at him.

Yahiko, along with a pair of other shinobi, jumped down along with Konan. The three Ame Orphans stood side by side with Neji in front of them and other shinobi behind them. Their eyes were all dead set on Danzo, who was now beyond enraged at this point.

Hanzo leaned forward to better examine the Orphans carefully, "Those three are…"

"Who do you think you are," Danzo bellowed. "You dare to infiltrate my village and disrupt the Chunin Exams as such?"

"Listen and listen well Danzo," Yahiko replied, his voice matching Danzo's in intensity. "Your reign of terror is coming to an end!"

* * *

Kiba and Naruto looked back, hearing the commotion coming from the stadium. Hanabi sighed with relief, the pain fading. Naruto looked down, realizing the jutsu was done. "Kiba, take Hanabi and get going," Naruto ordered. "We'll meet at the checkpoint Yahiko sensei told us about."

"No chance," Kiba shouted. "I'm gonna give that Danzo bastard a piece of my mind!"

"Naruto-kun," Hanabi whispered weakly. The spiky haired duo looked down as Hanabi started sitting up. "Could my father paralyze me with your seal activated?"

"I'm not sure, which is why I want to get you out of here. But they need me. Yahiko said that as Konoha's former Jinchuriki I have to be here."

"I wish to be as well," Hanabi murmured, rising to her feet. Before she could stand up, Hanabi fell backwards. Naruto swiftly caught her then lifted her off the ground.

"That's why you can't be here. Kiba is going to take you out of the village and we'll meet up again." Naruto turned to Kiba who eventually gave a reluctant nod. The blonde nodded back then handed Hanabi over to Kiba.

"Keep safe," Kiba told Naruto with a feral grin.

"No doubt," Naruto replied, returning his friend's grin. The two looked at each other before rushing off in opposite directions.

* * *

"Terror," Danzo repeated with a laugh. "I have done nothing to terrorize anyone! The world is at peace, and I am bringing everyone together! This is what needs to be done to ensure lasting peace!"

"Your peace is a lie," Nagato shouted. "You've built up your empire through lies and instigating wars!"

"You're nothing but a dictator," Konan continued. "Your lust for power won't stop until you have the entire world believing in your Wrath of Fire! The other countries should remain as they are, not all under your rule you old fool!"

"We're here to break your chain of hatred and your Wrath of Fire," Yahiko bellowed. "We're going to restore the world into balance and liberate the countries you've acquired in your grasp!"

"Imbeciles," Danzo boomed. "Peace can only be acquired through war and strife! If I could bring the world to peace just by talking I would! There is no other way!"

"There's the Will of Fire old man," Jiraiya shouted. All eyes turned to the new voice. Everyone was surprised upon seeing one of the Legendary Sannin had returned. "The belief of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju!"

"The Will of Fire is a lie," Danzo seethed. "The Will of Fire couldn't have brought this world together like I have! There is only the Wrath of Fire! But I don't expect a traitor like you to understand that!" Orochimaru narrowed his eyes on his former comrade across the stadium.

"The Will of Fire is not a lie," Yahiko snapped. "Your Wrath of Fire is built on nothing but lies and deceit! That's what we're here for: to break the world free from your lies. We're the new dawn, the liberators of the world: we are Akatsuki!"

"I knew it," Hanzo whispered. "Persistent rebels…"

"Even now _you're_ planning on starting a war with the Land of Lighting if your alliance with the Mizukage pulls through! You're the one starting these wars, causing all of this death and destruction! You use gangs of criminals like the Kurosuki Family to repress small villages and to keep increasing your own funds! Do your allies get any of this money, or is all of this bullying of smaller villages just your doing? You also killed half of the Land of Waves' population to use it as a base of operations! Does Yagura know that you're setting up to invade his country if your alliance doesn't work?" The short Kage glanced at Danzo. All eyes were now on Danzo for that matter, but the heavily wrinkled Kage paid no mind to it. "Your rule is nothing but lies and violence! You claim to want peace, but with all the power you have now, you don't even give a second thought before you swing it around like a club!"

"You lied to the Third Kazekage," Nagato continued. "Then once he planned to break off the alliance, you killed him. You murdered Sunagakure's leader to put Sasori in charge so you could better control the village!" Sasori shifted his gaze to Danzo. He knew that fact, but he wanted to gauge the Hokage's reaction. "Then you started a war with Iwagakure in order to trick the people into sweeping him into office! And then the two of you sent your shinobi in to kick Iwagakure while it was down so you could make another alliance."

"You slaughtered the Uchiha Clan," Konan stated, "Under the belief they were behind the attack of the Nine Tailed Fox. You wiped out an entire clan under a belief. You allowed and aided Hanzo in taking the Jinchuriki of Takigakure to increase your own power!"

"And you let an innocent man take the downfall for a crime he didn't commit," Neji shouted. The Ame Orphans looked at the young Hyuga, knowing that he spoke of his father.

"You all are fools," Danzo stated calmly. "The world is at peace in great deal of my actions. You wish to disrupt that peace because you want to play freedom-fighter? Arrogance. Arrogant and ignorant are all you idiots are!"

"We're stopping you before things get out of hand," a new voice screamed. Danzo and his allies' eyes snapped to the side, as did the eyes of the Akatsuki members. A flash shot out of the crowd and landed in front of Neji and the Ame Orphans. The Jinchuriki snapped his head up, his blue eyes looking up fiercely at the Hokage.

Sakura's jaw dropped slightly and her eyes widened. Zaku and Dosu looked at the blonde with shock before turning to Sakura with concern. The pink haired kunoichi placed her hand over her mouth, shaking her head gently. Her heart suddenly felt like it weighed a ton as it started to sink…

Higure narrowed his eyes on the blonde before glancing up at Jiraiya. The Sannin lowered his gaze to the light haired brunette before looking back to Naruto. Higure huffed then stared back at the scene in the stadium.

"Naruto Uzumaki," Danzo stated loudly. "Our long lost Jinchuriki…"

"I'm not yours old man," Naruto protested, aiming his finger threateningly at Danzo. "I'm with Akatsuki to take you down! You're the one who needs to be stopped, not Akatsuki! You're a selfish old man who only uses people as weapons and could care less if they died in battle, so long as they've served your selfish needs! You start war with any country who opposes you, and you wouldn't give a second thought about warring with Kirigakure if Yagura doesn't join you! You're already planning an invasion of the Land of Lightning, and god knows were else! You don't care about peace, you care about power! You want the world for yourself and you don't care who you step on to get it!"

"You sound just like your father," Danzo stated, focusing his eye on Naruto.

"Minato Namikaze, Konoha's Yellow Flash," Naruto replied with a cocky smirk. "One of your village's greatest heroes, and he believed in the Will of Fire, same as us! He died for your village, and all you ever saw him as was a tool for you to use!"

"Your father's first loyalty was to the village. He was a true Konoha shinobi."

"BULL SHIT! He just never had the chance to rebel against you! He had all the same beliefs as his teacher: Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin!" Naruto pointed back into the stands to emphasize his point. "If my father was still alive, I have no doubt he'd take me out of Konoha himself to join Akatsuki! So instead I'm going to do it for him! As the son of Konoha's greatest hero: I'm going to help bring out the world he believed in! Not the world that's ruled by a single dictator! Especially not when you're that dictator! Even if I have to pound you in the face myself, I'm going to bring peace to this world! You can count on that old man!"

"Amusing," Danzo murmured. "Unfortunately, you idiots forget: you're in the heart of _my_ village!" Just then, a squad of ANBU launched themselves over the heads of the village leaders, heading towards the Akatsuki shinobi on the ground.

Nagato moved forward, sticking his hand directly forward. Hanzo rose from his seat then performed a few hand signs. Danzo and the other Kages looked over before a cloud of smoke erupted. The ANBU screamed as they got ready to attack. Nagato's eyes widened before he launched another Shinra Tensei. The ANBU cried out as they were thrown back through the air. Hanzo crouched on his summoned salamander which suddenly exhaled a wave of fire.

"Move," Yahiko shouted. The Akatsuki shinobi quickly scattered as the fire engulfed almost half of the arena.

"Stop it," Danzo ordered. "Sasuke is still down there!" Hanzo's salamander closed its mouth. "Stop any of these rogue shinobi! Stop them!"

* * *

Jiraiya turned his head and grabbed a man coming at him by the throat with his massive hand. Higure had to lower his head as the man's feet dangled right behind him. Jiraiya socked the Chunin across the face before tossing him onto the stairs. The audience screamed with fright before Jiraiya looked down, grinning at Higure. The retired shinobi looked up with an expressionless face.

"See ya later," Jiraiya replied before rushing off. Higure looked back over his shoulder, seeing Jiraiya and a group of shinobi in black cloaks with blood red clouds on them, exit the arena. The retired shinobi quickly rose out of his seat then rushed towards where Sakura was, nearly half the stadium away.

* * *

Sakura stared at the ground with blank, empty eyes. Her team stared at her with a worried look. Dosu reached out and gently touched her shoulder, "Sakura…?" The pink haired kunoichi quickly spun around and rushed towards the exit. "Hey Sakura!"

"Go after her," Anko ordered. "Keep her safe and away from these Akatsuki goons! I'll drop off Zaku with some medics and follow after you!" Dosu nodded then chased after Sakura. Anko turned to run, but was stopped when Higure landed in front of her.

"Where's Sakura," Higure questioned.

"She ran off. I sent Dosu after her, but you know how fast she can be. I was gonna drop Zaku off with somewhere then find her."

"Don't worry about that," Higure replied. "I'll find her and Dosu. You help the village." Anko nodded to Higure before he ran to the exit. _'Sakura…what're you thinking right now?'_

* * *

Danzo turned to Orochimaru and the other leaders, "Orochimaru, escort our guests somewhere safe."

"I don't think so," Hanzo replied. "Those three that revealed themselves are the leaders of the rebels I had to deal with a few years ago. If you want to quell this Akatsuki threat, you'll need my experience in dealing with them."

"I want to see how this unfolds," Sasori murmured with a smirk. "This is the first bit of entertainment that's happened to the world in years."

"This is amusing to you," Danzo asked angrily.

The Kazekage opened his mouth to speak, but something cut him off. The sound of a stone wall breaking open caused the Kages to turn their head, seeing the same claw of sand that Gaara used in his match against Dosu. Boulders and bodies, both civilian and shinobi alike, flew out as Gaara attacked.

"What in the world," Kabuto questioned. The Jinchuriki jumped out of the hole in the wall, half of his body encased by sand, taking the form of the demon within him. "No…"

"What the—Gaara," Sasori shouted. The Jinchuriki looked over then growled before jumping off in the opposite direction. "What in the world is wrong with him!"

"A story for another time perhaps." The village leaders snapped their heads around, seeing a masked man standing next to Kisame and Yagura. "The flames of war have been kindled very nicely. Until then, the Mizukage, Kisame, and I will take our leave." Tobi placed his hands on Kisame and Yagura's shoulder. The mask began to expand and swirl, sucking all three of the individuals in a strange vortex.

"What in the world was that about," Sasori questioned. Danzo remained silent, his eye hardened over in anger.

"Sir, I believe that was that Tobi fellow from Kirigakure," Kabuto replied. "Do you think he was responsible for Gaara's transformation?"

"I have no doubt he was," Danzo murmured. "Orochimaru! Go and help defend this village! Kill any of these 'Akatsuki' ninjas on sight!" The Sannin nodded with a hardened face before he shot off towards the village. _'Damn you. I don't know how the hell you did it, but I know you're behind this…Madara Uchiha!'_

**

* * *

Well…the ending was definitely fun to write. Now I can't wait to write the insanely large-scale chase scene. Or would it be considered a chase-chapter since it's a fan-fiction? Anywho, expect action in the next chapter. LOTS of action. And some drama…and then prepare for even more drama after the next chapter! With some action! Not a butt-ton of action like the next chapter, but still a deceit amount of action. Hell, just expect action and drama for the next two or three chapters.  
Also expect greater detail on Akatsuki's uniforms after the whole getaway from Konoha, because the uniforms will sort of determine rank more or less within the group. Until next time people!**


	17. The Great Escape

Konoha was in mass panic. A group of rogue ninjas had revealed themselves in the heart of the village, moving from the Chunin Exam stadium towards the outer walls of Konoha. Danzo and his allied shinobi made it top priority to stop these rogues immediately before they escaped the village. Akatsuki was spread throughout the village as they made their escape, as was Yahiko's plan to make it harder to stop them.

* * *

Nagato followed Konan as the two of them lead a small squad through some back alleys. They stopped when Konan stopped, letting a squad of Jonin pass before they made a break for it.

* * *

Jiraiya shot across the rooftops with Zabuza, Haku, and a four other shinobi behind them. Jiraiya was in charge of leading a noticeable squad to take most of the heat, hence why everyone was more or less an effective shock trooper. Jiraiya would've been surprised if anyone actually had the guts to try and attack a group of shinobi when it consisted of one of the Legendary Sannin and Zabuza Momochi. Just then, a group of shinobi cut off the squad of seven. Jiraiya huffed, seeing the nervousness behind the shinobis' eyes. Zabuza scoffed, stepping forward as he pulled his giant sword off his back and pointed it at the Konoha ninja in front of him.

* * *

Kiba had barely made it outside of the walls before all hell broke loose. Luckily he was nearly a mile outside of the village with the half conscious Hanabi on his back. "It's okay," Kiba told her. "We're out of the village now."

"W-we should keep moving," Hanabi murmured. "No doubt Konoha will have squads patrolling outside the walls for anyone who managed to slip through their fingers…"

"Right," Kiba agreed. The spiky haired brunette gave one last concerned look over his shoulder to the village. _'Please come back in one piece guys…'_ Kiba turned forward then shot forward down the trail leading away from Konoha.

* * *

Hana Inuzuka snarled as she lunged forward, spinning around in a tunneling fang towards a shinobi in front of her. As she launched forward, she threw two kunai at two Chunin standing on either side of her. One of the knives hit directly at the heart of one of the Chunin and the other blade struck right in the stomach. Hana slammed into the shinobi in front of her with full force, throwing him through a small wooden cart. A third shinobi, a Jonin, appeared behind Hana with a sword drawn and ready to strike. As he struck, Itachi appeared behind the Inuzuka and blocked the strike with his own sword.

Itachi pushed the attacker back then shot forward to deal with him. Their swordsmen skill seemed to be even as they slashed and swiped away at each other's blades. Hana watched the fight carefully, seeing if there was an opening for her to jump in at. She snapped her head around once she heard a man screaming as he rushed her. Hana simply threw her fist forward. The back of her hand slammed against the man's face, breaking his nose and knocking him unconscious. Hana looked back at Itachi who had just flung his opponent's sword out of his hands. In the blink of an eye, Itachi tore upward with his sword, slicing the man across the chest and lifting him off the ground in the process. The Jonin spun around then hit with a thud. He wasn't dead, but he wouldn't be causing trouble anytime soon. The couple looked to one another and nodded.

Before they could leave, the loud, echoing cry of someone caused them to turn around. Something exploded through a nearby window, spinning around wildly before slamming into the ground. A figure launched away the spinning bundle as a Konoha shinobi's head slammed through the ground. Obito slid back across the ground before looking over at Itachi and Hana.

"Oh, hey kids!"

"What in the world were you doing," Itachi asked.

"He primary lotus-ed some sucker through a window," Hana answered.

"I mean why is he by himself."

"I got separated from my squad," Obito replied. "So I figure I'd make a break for it on my own and join up with the next group I encountered. Just so happened to be the Uchiha Inuzuka cross breed couple."

"Ha-ha," Hana sarcastically laughed.

"Let's keep moving," Itachi ordered. "We can make fun of each other later." The three Akatsuki shinobi rushed down the streets towards the gates of Konoha, which seemed to be miles away with a whole lot of trouble in between.

* * *

Anko struggled to carry a reluctant Zaku to the nearest civilian evacuation group. "This is bull! The village needs me and you're forcing me to hide?"

"Your body hasn't recovered from your curse mark idiot! It's not my call!"

"Actually it is! You're the one carrying me to hide in a hole in the ground! Okay, look: these Akatsuki guys are heading towards the gates of Konoha to escape quickly. They're not trying to harm civilians or anything! We can move to the outer part of the village first and by then I'll recover and be able to help! It's a win-win!" Anko scowled, staring at her student. Knowing that the boy would whine and fight the entire way, Anko turned around then shot off towards the outer wall of Konoha.

* * *

Orochimaru stepped forward, his five students kneeling before him in a straight line. "What is your will Orochimaru-sama," they said in unison.

"From our brief intelligence report, we've been able to determine that this Akatsuki escape is well thought out. They have groups of high ranking shinobi running out in the open to draw our attention towards them while the rest slip by our defenses and a few of the rats are able to sneak through the cracks. Kimimaro, Kidomaru, and Sakon will find these rats and either kill them on sight, or draw them out into the light where other shinobi can aid you. Tayuya, Jirobo, you're both with me to take care of these shock squads."

"Yes lord Orochimaru," Jirobo replied.

"Time to fuck up some bad guys!" Orochimaru shot off to the side with Tayuya and Jirobo following him. Kimimaro nodded to Kidomaru and Sakon before shooting off in the opposite direction.

* * *

Back in the stadium, which was still being evacuated, Hiashi Hyuga along with his daughter Hinata, were moving frantically through the crowd, trying to find Hanabi. "Use the curse mark on her forehead," Hinata suggested.

"I'm trying," Hiashi hissed. "These Akatsuki scum must have stolen her!"

"I'll go find her!" Hiashi turned his head with a shocked look before Hinata jumped off over the crowd.

"Hinata no! Damn it!" Hiashi quickly chased after his brash daughter, who was more than eager to make a name for herself by taking out at least one high class rogue.

* * *

Naruto, Neji, and Yahiko moved swiftly through the chaotic village with a large squad chasing them. If there's one thing Yahiko knew it's that Naruto and Neji were both high priority targets. And of course he had to be stuck with both of them with no backup and a squad of nearly a dozen shinobi trailing behind them. Yahiko grabbed the handle of the sword hanging of his back. It was long and narrow, capable of quick, efficient strikes. The orange haired shinobi glanced back over his shoulder and spun around, lashing his sword out. He managed to scar a shinobi across the face, causing him to scream in pain and fall down between a pair of buildings as he continued on.

"Come on Yahiko," Naruto shouted. "You're slowing us down!"

"You want to fight these guys, be my guest kid!"

"Will both of you stop arguing for FIVE MINUTES," Neji yelled at the top of his lungs. "Seriously, we're running for our lives and you two can't help but argue! Am I the only one who thinks you're a pair of idiots for that?"

"Alright, calm down!" Naruto sprung off a rooftop, crossing his fingers from one another. "You wanted me to fight them Yahiko sensei, here ya go!" A serious of countless Naruto copies emerged. The Konoha squad froze in their tracks, unsure about going up against the dozens and dozens of clones.

"They're not real," a Jonin shouted. "No kid that young could use the multi-shadow clone jutsu!" Reaffirmed, the squad charged. Naruto shook his head while Yahiko and Neji watched with smirks on their faces. The army of Naruto's rushed forward, screaming with all their might before they started attacking the squad of Konoha ninja.

"Poor suckers," Naruto murmured.

"Why hello there," a voice murmured softly. The three rogues snapped their heads around, seeing a young man with silver hair pulled back into a ponytail, wearing round sunglasses land on the building across from them.

"Kabuto Yakushi," Yahiko murmured. "You're the Kazekage, Sasori's, assistant and for all extensive purposes his right hand man."

"I'm flattered you took the time to learn about me," Kabuto replied with a smug smile. "Now, I'm going to ask this once, so please just answer the first time. What did you do to Gaara, my village's Jinchuriki?"

Yahiko narrowed his eyes cautiously. "We didn't do anything to him," Naruto shouted. "We didn't even fight him. Why the hell do you think we did something to him?"

"Well, it seems that Gaara went crazy and started to transform into his demonic form. It just seems too convenient that you all would start such trouble and Gaara would choose to lose control at the same time."

"Neji, Naruto, get moving," Yahiko whispered. "Despite how he looks, this guy is a high level Jonin. He's way beyond what either of you can handle. I'll hold him off and you guys make a break for it."

"Hey, don't think I'm some stupid kid," Naruto shouted. "You're not my only teacher ya know! Itachi taught me this one cool trick before we came here." Suddenly, a blonde clone shot up behind Kabuto. The Kazekage's assistant gasped as he turned around before the clone wrapped its arms and legs around Kabuto's body. Naruto formed a hand sign while grinning, "Shadow clone explosion!" The clone that grabbed Kabuto suddenly lit up before erupting in a blast of fire and smoke. Yahiko and Neji's eyes were wide with shock before they turned around, staring at the grinning blonde. "Cool right?"

Yahiko shook his head before turning back to the cloud of smoke, "We need to keep moving. Kabuto has some strange ability where his body keeps healing itself whenever he's injured. It's like the healing abilities the Kyuubi gives you Naruto."

"Ah crap," Naruto shouted.

"Let's get moving," Neji said as he turned to his blonde comrade. Yahiko shot off first, followed by the two Genin.

Kabuto walked out of the smoke, his clothes torn, hair hanging around his head in a shaggy, unkempt manner. As he walked forward, his injuries started healing. Kabuto held his now ruined glasses, looking at them with a half disinterested look. He dropped them to the ground before looking off at the fleeing rogues.

"Well…Naruto Uzumaki eh? Quite the unpredictable one I see. I'll have to keep an eye on him from now on." Kabuto turned away from the rogues and started to walk away. _'I could tell they weren't lying though. The know nothing of what happened to Gaara. I'll just have to keep my eyes peeled won't I?'_ The silver haired shinobi shot off into the village.

* * *

Dosu landed on a water tower that gave him a good vantage point of the village. The boy was panting heavily with some sweat trickling down his face. His match with Gaara was still weighing on him, and chasing after one of the fastest Genin in Konoha didn't help much. "Damn it, where are you Sakura? And while we're at it: why the hell did you run off?" Dosu sighed, shaking his head before looking out into the village. "And why am I asking myself these questions?" The mask Genin scowled before jumping back off into the village.

* * *

Zabuza stamped his foot in the back of an injured shinobi, causing him to cry out in pain before drifting into unconsciousness. The swordsmen looked up at Jiraiya who dropped a dead man to the ground. "This is going well so far," Zabuza stated.

"So far," Jiraiya murmured. Suddenly, something smashed through the building behind the Sannin. The white haired man snapped his head around, seeing a towering ogre looking monster rushing at him. Zabuza screamed as he landed a devastating kick to the beast's chest, causing it to stumble back. "What the hell is that?" Zabuza landed with a soft grunt, staring at the club wielding beast.

"Zabuza," Haku shouted. "We've got more of those things!" Two more monsters appeared on either side of the street, cornering the Akatsuki shock squad.

"Clever tactic," Jiraiya murmured.

"You can admire it later," Zabuza stated. "You got an old friend coming to visit you…" Jiraiya's eyes narrowed, knowing who it was before he looked over at him. Orochimaru stood on the roof of a nearby building, staring down at Jiraiya with narrowed, hate filled eyes. On either side of the pale Sannin was Tayuya and Jirobo, the former playing a flute softly. "Looks like there's some unfinished business between you two…"

"Something like that," Jiraiya replied before turning his body to his old teammate.

Orochimaru tilted his head, examining Jiraiya's attire curiously. The white haired Sannin wore a long cloak similar to the rest of Akatsuki's with the red clouds. The difference was that his had some type of belt around it above the waist, the shoulders were broader and more defined, and the sleeves were tightened by mesh forearm warmers. Of course the sage wore his signature red, wooden sandals.

"I must admit old friend," Orochimaru began, "your taste in fashion has certainly improved."

"Can't say the same for you," Jiraiya replied. "You still look like a pawn of Danzo's."

"How dare you talk to lord Orochimaru like that," Jirobo shouted. The Sannin stuck his arm out, silently ordering his student to stay still.

"Good boy," Zabuza said mockingly towards the large Chunin. Jirobo scowled, clenching his fists tightly. "Plan of attack," the swordsmen whispered to Jiraiya.

"I'll take on Orochimaru, the rest of you handle the two brats and then assist me. I doubt neither Orochimaru nor myself will be able to kill the other without help. So finish those other two quickly to aid me. If we can take out Orochimaru, we'll already deal a huge blow to Danzo's alliance before the war even starts." Zabuza nodded, lowering down as he clutched his sword. Haku stepped next to his master, his eyes hardening on his opponents above.

"Haku, you and some of the others take care of the redhead," Zabuza whispered. "She's most likely the one controlling these ogre beasts. If we can take her out, or even get her away from the others here, we'll already get a huge advantage in this battle."

"Right," Haku replied with a quick nod. _'The fact that she relies on these beasts must mean she's not a close range fighter. I've just gotta get in and she's toast.'_ Haku stared at his intended target for a moment before quickly adding, _'She is kinda cute though…'_

"GO!" Jiraiya shot forward, dirt flying up as he launched off the ground. Orochimaru's eyes widened before he was dealt a devastating blow to the face that sent him flying across the block. The white haired Sannin quickly shot after his former comrade with haste.

Tayuya and Jirobo were barely able to see what had just happened before Jiraiya moved after Orochimaru. The two turned to help their master, but were cut off by the rest of the Akatsuki shock team.

"Looks like we can't afford to hold back Tayuya," Jirobo stated.

"Maybe you can't you fat ass pushover. Don't speak for me again got it?" Jirobo huffed, ignoring his partner's last comment.

"Ready boys," Zabuza questioned. The Akatsuki forces nodded before following Zabuza who lunged forward.

* * *

Far outside the village, a vortex opened up, revealing Kisame Hoshigaki, Yagura, and then Tobi. "So what now," the swordsmen asked, turning towards Tobi.

"Get Yagura as far away as possible. Go back to the Land of Water."

"What's the plan," a new voice asked. The three men looked to the ground, seeing the Venus flytrap-hybrid, Zetsu, coming out of the ground.

"Before I left I used my Sharingan to drive Gaara mad," Tobi replied. "He'll attack anything that moves. Along with the confusion and chaos from the Akatsuki, I'm sure Gaara could go on quite the impressive killing spree."

"So what happens if he's taken out," Kisame questioned.

"Sasori wouldn't allow such a fate to befall his precious Jinchuriki. Which is why I'm heading back. Once Akatsuki leaves, I'll take Gaara back with us. This will inevitably spark a war between Danzo's alliance and the Land of Water."

"Which in turn will spark an alliance between Water and Lightning," Kisame stated with a sneer.

"Exactly," Tobi replied with a sinisterly gleeful tone. "The countries will tear themselves apart, and then out of the smoldering remains of war we shall rise to take the world for ourselves."

"Still, this is a risky gamble," Kisame replied. "Are we sure we're ready?"

"We soon shall be. The alliance between the Lands of Water and Lightning will no doubt be forged as soon as Danzo and his allies declare war on Kirigakure. The Raikage will undoubtedly see this as his opportunity to strike back effectively against Danzo. Not only that, but I'm sure I can stir up some trouble in the Land of Earth to further hinder Danzo's power. They key is to disrupt his control over the Jinchuriki. That's where the backbone to Danzo's power lies. With that said, Kisame, get our dear Mizukage back to the Land of Water ASAP."

"Right," Kisame nodded with his sinister sneer. The swordsmen and the short Kage turned and immediately rushed off into the forest.

"What now Tobi," Zetsu questioned, "Why aren't you going with them back to Kirigakure?"

"There's still a matter I must attend to," Tobi replied, turning on his heel away from Zetsu. "Watch Gaara for me. I'll swing by to pick him up before the Akatsuki leaves." Zetsu nodded then seeped back into the ground. Tobi lifted his head up and allowed his mask to consume him entirely.

* * *

"We're almost at the gates," Konan shouted. Nagato's eyes snapped up suddenly. The redhead lunged forward, grabbed Konan and then shot backwards as something smashed into the ground. The two looked up along with the rest of their group, seeing a crazed Jinchuriki standing against the wall, staring at them with murderous, blood thirsty eyes.

"Gaara of the Desert," Nagato whispered softly.

"Kill…KILL," Gaara shouted.

"Move it," Konan yelled. The Akatsuki scattered as Gaara's massive sand arm shot forward and took out a large chunk of the ground. "Nagato, help me distract him! Everyone else get out of the village!" Konan then separated into thousands of white sheets of paper.

Nagato slammed his hands together, "Summoning jutsu!" A cloud of smoke emerged behind the Rinnengan user. A giant bird-like creature emerged from the smoke, screeching loudly. "Everyone get on!" The Akatsuki shinobi jumped on the bird's back as quickly as they could.

"Hold up!" Nagato turned to the source of the voice, seeing Obito, Itachi, and Hana rushing forward with several other allies they picked up. The two Uchiha clansmen and Hana ushered their allies onto Nagato's summon. "Itachi, Hana, get on that thing and get out of here now!"

"I'm not leaving," Itachi snapped at Obito.

"Me neither!"

Obito rolled his eyes before muttering, "Worth a shot. Alright, take off!" Nagato threw his hand up to the sky. The bird shrieked before flapping its wings and moving to take off.

A sound of crackling lightning caught Obito's attention. The spiky haired Uchiha looked up before rocketing to the sky. Obito slammed into a Konoha shinobi, and seized him by the wrist. Obito's now active Sharingan centered into the eyes of his old teammate: Kakashi Hatake. Kakashi's lightning blade slowly faded away once he realized he couldn't break free from Obito's grasp. The masked Jonin cried out as he threw his leg up, landing a hit on his former teammate's chest. Obito grunted before flying back down to earth. He twisted his body around to land on his feet and slid back towards Itachi and Nagato. Kakashi landed with a small grunt on the ground, looking up at Obito.

"Heya Kakashi," Obito greeted with a grin. "Long time no see eh?"

"Obito Uchiha…along with Itachi Uchiha, both traitors to our village of Konohagakure. You dare to show your faces in the village with these rogues?"

"Well pardon me for getting out of the village that slaughtered my entire clan in cold blood," Obito exclaimed snootily. "I just didn't want to be killed for a crime I didn't commit." Kakashi would've replied, but his eyes snapped up when he saw Gaara, screaming like a banshee, attacking Akatsuki and himself. The shinobi all scattered as Gaara smashed into the ground, throwing up dirt and rocks on impact.

Konan reassembled behind Nagato, an annoyed look in her eyes, "Did you forget we were dealing with a Jinchuriki?" The redhead chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. Konan rolled her eyes before shooting off towards Gaara.

Kakashi and Obito lunged at one another, the former with his father's White Chakra Saber. Obito used a kunai to counter the blade. Though the knife held up against Kakashi's tanto, Obito's kunai was dangerously close to being sliced in half. The two launched backwards. Obito hurled his kunai at Kakashi. The masked Jonin jerked his head to the side, letting the blade pass harmlessly by his face. Kakashi rushed forward as Obito pulled out two more kunai, one in each hand. Itachi sprung up behind Obito, inhaling deeply before launching a series of fireballs out from his mouth. Kakashi slid to a stop before vaulting backwards, flipping and spinning between the fireballs. Obito rushed forward, attempting to strike Kakashi before he landed on the ground. The masked Jonin landed on his hand, seeing Obito rushing at him. He cried out as he threw up some dirt into Obito's eye before rolling away. Obito's goggles shielded his eyes, but the dirt still blocked his vision. The Uchiha stopped then quickly attempted to rub the dirt away from his sight. He looked down, catching a glimpse of a paper bomb Kakashi placed on the ground before throwing dirt up at him. An explosion went off, consuming Obito. Kakashi landed, scanning the cloud of smoke carefully. The cloud broke in one area, and Kakashi instinctively hurled a pair of shuriken forward. The throwing stars hit a kunai, much to Kakashi's annoyance.

On the other side of the cloud of smoke, Obito slid out, completely unharmed. "Damn, I almost bit the dust there."

"It's Kakashi Hatake," Itachi stated with a deadpanned expression.

"Right, guess I overlooked that little factor," Obito replied with a nervous chuckle.

The smoke cleared. Kakashi glared at the Uchiha duo across from him with an intense hatred. He couldn't take on these two at the same time, despite his skill. He knew it, and the Akatsuki duo knew it too. Suddenly, a figure landed next to Kakashi. The masked Jonin shifted his eyes slightly towards the figure. Itachi's eyes widened with shock, while Obito's merely hardened. Sasuke Uchiha raised his head up, eyes burning with rage as he focused on Itachi.

"Well," Kakashi began with a mocking tone. The masked Jonin looked back at the Uchiha rogues. Obito could tell that by the look in Kakashi's eyes that he was smiling deviously. "Isn't this just one big family reunion?"

"Kakashi!" Said Jonin looked up, catching a glimpse of another shinobi that landed on his other side. Might Guy lifted his head up, his usual grin replaced by a hardened glare on the shinobi before him. "Mind if I assist?"

"By all means," Kakashi murmured. "But I think Sasuke would like to deal with Itachi by himself. Right Sasuke?"

"Right," Sasuke seethed, not taking his eyes off his older brother.

Obito shifted down into a defensive stance, "Crap. Itachi, how fast can you take Sasuke out?"

"He's my brother," Itachi hissed, also lowering into a similar position.

"Doesn't answer my question," Obito blatantly replied.

"Attack," Kakashi shouted in unison with another voice. The two Jonin looked up, but Sasuke boldly rushed forward, screaming at the top of his lungs.

Yahiko came down on Kakashi with his long blade. The masked shinobi barely had time to block with his Chakra Saber. Kakashi stumbled back as Yahiko landed on the ground. Guy moved to attack, but something slammed into him with tremendous force. Guy skidded against the ground with Naruto's head and shoulder slammed into his stomach. The taijutsu master screamed as he tossed Naruto up and knocked him back with a spinning, over-head kick. Naruto spun around, bouncing off the ground before he landed on all fours. Suddenly, a second Naruto launched up out of the ground and latched himself to Guy's jacket. The Jonin swiftly tore his jacket off then spun around and kicked it up into the air, were it exploded harmlessly. In the same motion from the earlier kick, Guy spun around and smashed his fist over the back of Naruto's head, causing the blonde to face-plant into the dirt.

As Sasuke charged, he didn't notice as Neji sprung into his way. The young Uchiha stopped, but was too close to the young Hyuga and was hit with the full force of his rotation. Obito used this time to shoot past Sasuke and aid Naruto.

Itachi moved to help Neji, but something landed in front of him. Behind gleaming glasses, Kabuto's murderous gaze caught Itachi off guard. The Uchiha barely had time to jump back as the Kazekage's assistant struck.

"Now this is quite a sight," Kabuto murmured, looking at the small war going on around him. "Apparently, you Akatsuki rebels aren't in any mood to fight or cause mass mayhem. Which means you weren't the ones who turned our dear Gaara into that rampaging state. Curious…" Kabuto turned back to Itachi and opened his mouth to speak, but was silenced when the Uchiha plunged a kunai into his stomach.

"You talk too much," Itachi whispered. Kabuto coughed and then laughed. Itachi looked at the silver haired foe curiously before he felt a jabbing pain in his stomach. The Akatsuki rogue launched himself back and knelt down, holding his stomach in pain.

"I'm sorry," Kabuto replied casually. Itachi looked up, seeing the wound in Kabuto's gut closing up. "I was just making a simple observation. I think my lord Kazekage would like to know what happened to his only Jinchuriki." Itachi narrowed his eyes for a moment, scanning his opponent for a moment. "Whatever would that look be for?"

"You're Kabuto Yakushi," Itachi stated. "I shouldn't realized that." Itachi slowly rose up to his feet, groaning as the pain in his stomach intensified. "If I did I would've known that a simple kunai through your gut would do nothing to you."

"So, Akatsuki is apparently aware of my healing abilities and my status as a medical ninjutsu and lord Sasori's personal assistant. I'm supposed to be impressed?"

"No…" Itachi shot forward, prompting Kabuto to prepare himself.

* * *

Guy tossed Naruto off of the ground and threw a crushing punch forward. Naruto crossed his arms over his face to shield himself, but the force of the blow still sent him flying backwards. The taijutsu master took a step towards Naruto, but was suddenly stopped when two swift blows were dealt: one between the shoulder blades and the second on a pressure point near his neck. Obito flipped over Guy and landed in front of Naruto.

"You okay kid?" Naruto sat up, wiping some blood away from the corner of his mouth before bitterly spitting to the side.

"Never better," the Jinchuriki sarcastically replied. Guy groaned as he craned his neck to the right and then to the left, shrugging off Obito's attack like it was nothing.

"Listen Naruto: you've got to make a break for it," Obito ordered. The blonde gasped with surprise, and utter confusion. He looked up to the spiky haired Uchiha, expecting an answer. "Konoha's main objective now is to retake the Jinchuriki: you. Akatsuki's main objective now is to get you out of here as quickly as possible."

"What, nobody told me this!"

"You seriously think we'd let a high value target fall into enemy hands," Obito questioned curtly. "Get out of here now Naruto." The blonde paused for a second, scowling angrily. Obito turned his head, Sharingan flaring angrily at the Jinchuriki, "NOW!" Naruto yelped with fright before immediately turning around and running off. "Good," Obito sighed. He turned around to make a smart-ass remark towards Guy, but instead had to duck below the Blood Red Beast's fist.

* * *

Gaara yelled in rage as he threw his arm outward, causing the Akatsuki to keep their distance. Konan's eyes shifted, seeing Naruto was making a break for it. The blue haired kunoichi's eyes snapped to the side, noticing Hana also saw Naruto. The two kunoichi looked at each other, both with hardened eyes. "I can handle myself against this," Hana stated. "Besides, if he runs into trouble we'll need the best to help him." Konan smirked and nodded to Hana before darting after Naruto.

Gaara's eyes moved towards the kunoichi who made a break for it. He followed her trail, seeing his fellow Jinchuriki make it over the walls of the village. "Naruto! NARUTO UZUMAKI!" Nagato and Hana gave the rampant Jinchuriki a confused look. "KILL!" Gaara shot off the ground so fast that even Nagato almost missed him.

"After him," Nagato shouted. The two moved to pursue Gaara, but were quickly cut off by a group of Suna shinobi.

"You're not going to take our village's Jinchuriki like you did Konoha's," one shinobi stated.

"Rogue scum," another hissed. "Prepare to die!" Nagato and Hana moved back-to-back, waiting for the Suna shinobi to strike first.

"Well we're certainly a mismatched pair," Hana whispered. Nagato smirked in agreement. The two of them had little to no interaction up until now. Most of their contact was either through reports or through Itachi.

"No better way to get to no each other right," Nagato joked. Hana huffed, a smile forming across her face.

* * *

Dosu landed on the roof near the gates of the village, seeing an alarming number of enemy and ally shinobi battling each other. _'Where is that girl! She wouldn't be stupid enough to get involved in _that_ battle would she?'_ Dosu threw his head back and groaned loudly. Why did he always have to be involved with the complicated people?

"Dosu!" Said Genin turned to the sound of his voice just as Higure landed behind him. Dosu couldn't help but note that Higure wore a pouch on his back and two holsters on his thighs. Was he actually dressed up in his old shinobi gear? "Search the rest of the village for Sakura. I'll check outside the village."

"Why would she go _outside_ the village," Dosu asked.

"Just go now!" Dosu stared at the older shinobi for a moment before rushing back into the village. Higure looked towards the battle at the front gates for a few moments before dashing forward.

* * *

Naruto sprung from tree to tree, wind rushing past him as he moved. Something caught his eye, which later turned out to be Konan reassembling from hundreds of white sheets of paper. "What're you doing here Konan?"

"I'm keeping an eye on you to make sure you get back safely. And if you complain I will beat you up when we get home." Naruto couldn't help but to crack a smile.

The two looked ahead, but suddenly stopped when someone cut them off. Konan's eyes hardened and narrowed on the person in front of her while Naruto's eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly.

Sakura's eyes gleamed brightly, fixated only on Naruto. All she did was stare at him. Naruto tried to think of something to say, but what _could_ he say? He lied to her for a little over a full month, and here she was right now in front of him after he's revealed himself to be a rogue ninja. What would Sakura say to him at this moment?

"S-Sakura-chan…I uh…"

"Save it," Sakura snapped. Naruto quickly shut his mouth and lowered his eyes to his feet. "You lied to me! You're Konoha's long lost Jinchuriki and, and you…you've been _manipulating_ me!"

"I wasn't manipulating you Sakura-chan," Naruto replied pleadingly.

"SHUT UP!" Naruto backed down again. Konan stayed silent, watching the boy standing next to her. She didn't need anything spelled out for her at this point. "You're played me! What the hell was all this about anyway?"

"W-we're trying to liberate the world from Danzo's oppression," Naruto replied weakly. It was hard to sound convincing or inspiring by the tone and volume of the boy's voice.

"So you sneak into the village and you mess with my head? Everything you said to me was a lie!" Sakura's jaw tightened, memories of her time with Naruto flashing through her mind. "God, I opened up to you! I told you about my parents! I don't tell _anyone_ about my parents! I told you everything about me and you just fed me lies right back!" Naruto looked up as though he were a beaten animal. He noticed the tears welling up in Sakura's emerald eyes. "Did any of it matter or was it all an act to get close to me? To get information out of me about the village and my family!"

"No, that was never my intention Sakura-chan! I…I genuinely liked you, I really did!"

"So what? You think that you could just make me fall head over heels for you in a month and then just bail out! How the hell did you think I'd react to something like this you fucking idiot!"

'_Lord is this girl upset,'_ Konan thought as her eyes widened.

"I…" Naruto sighed, his shoulders slouching down in defeat. "I don't know Sakura-chan. I never meant to hurt you or anything like that. I just…I never wanted this day to come." The Jinchuriki raised his head, staring directly into Sakura's eyes. "But I honestly do like you Sakura-chan. I like you a lot. My feelings…they weren't a lie. I guess my feelings were the only honest part of me this whole time." A single tear rolled down Sakura's face. The pink haired kunoichi clenched her fists, pressed her lips together, and her eyes cold as steel.

"I don't believe you," Sakura replied, putting emphasis on every syllable. Naruto closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "Why should I believe you? Tell me why I should believe you Naruto!"

"You shouldn't," Naruto murmured. "You have no reason to believe me." The blonde looked back up into Sakura's eyes in sorrow. "I'm so sorry Sakura-chan…"

Sakura huffed bitterly before crouching down into a combative stance. Konan looked over at Naruto who gave no signs of movement. The blue haired Akatsuki looked back at Sakura, "You sure you want to try it girl? I've tangled with shinobi far worse than you."

"I don't care," Sakura snapped. The Konoha kunoichi turned her eyes back to Naruto, "Did I ever tell you exactly how my father died traitor?" The last word struck Naruto like a blade through his heart. Konan's eyes hardened a bit in Naruto's defense.

"He died before you were born right," Naruto glumly asked.

"He died defending this village and my mother," Sakura responded. "He died fighting the Kyuubi thirteen years ago!" Naruto's eyes flickered with horror before he stared up at Sakura.

"Oh great," Konan muttered softly. _'Another idiot who thinks Naruto is the demon he harbors.'_

"S-Sakura-chan, I…you can't…"

"Can't blame you for my dad's death? Why can't I HUH?"

"Because Naruto was less than an hour old with the Kyuubi attacked," Konan stated bluntly. Naruto looked up at the blue haired woman with a frightful look. If there's one thing Konan hated it was idiots who blamed Naruto for the murders that the Kyuubi caused. There were even those in Akatsuki who blamed Naruto. "Listen, I know you're hurting right now, and what you've witnessed is a lot to process, but I don't think you want to die because you're angry with Naruto here."

"NARUTO!" Two heads spun around, seeing a miniature sand demon behind them with its arms raised high above his head.

"MOVE!" Konan shoved Naruto out of the way, leaving herself open to Gaara's attack. The two massive arms of sand smashed into her back and sent her flying towards the ground. Konan cried out in pain as she smashed into the ground below. Gaara landed on a sturdy tree branch then turned to Naruto.

"Naruto…Uzumaki!" Sakura's unyielding hatred now wavered at the sight of a partially transformed Gaara. "I'll kill you Naruto Uzumaki!"

"What the hell did I do," Naruto shrieked fearfully. "I don't even know you!"

Gaara screamed as he thrusted his arm forward. Naruto yelped then quickly jumped over the thick arm. Gaara roared in anger as he quickly moved to attack Naruto. Unfortunately, the blonde realized he accidently headed towards Sakura. The blonde didn't think twice before he grabbed Sakura's arm and threw her over his back.

"SAND SHURIKEN!" Gaara flung his arms outward, sending bullets of sand forward. Naruto and Sakura looked back with the same panic ridden face. The blonde quickly sprung upward, lifting his legs forward as the projectiles passed harmlessly under him.

'_Konan!'_ Naruto looked back over his shoulder regretfully. He had to go back for her, but right now his main concern was surviving this rampaging psychopath.

* * *

Konan groaned, as she struggled to get up. Unfortunately, Gaara's devastating blow left her immobile. "Damn it…Naruto…" The sound of someone hitting the ground caused Konan's eyes to widen with alarm. "You've gotta be kidding," she muttered. Footsteps started approaching her. "I can't go out like this…"

"If you say so," a lighthearted voice replied. Konan's eyes twitched with confusion before she looked up, seeing an unfamiliar man with green eyes and light brown hair standing above her. "Hold still, I'll help."

"Y-you're a Konoha shinobi!"

"Retired actually," the man casually responded. "Now do you want me to help?" Konan's eyes remained cautious, but she relaxed her body.

"Why're you helping me," Konan questioned as the man pulled out a scroll. He made a series of hand signs in lightning fast succession with the scroll between his hands.

"I'm retired." He quickly snapped his arms outward, unveiling the scroll with a series of large, simple symbols. "Besides, you told me you couldn't go out like this." Konan blinked with disbelief as the man put the scroll over her back.

"You can't be-," Konan was cut off by an intense, overwhelming pain flooding her back. The scroll started glowing brightly against her injuries. Konan groaned, pressing her forehead against the ground in agony.

"Hey, I'm not medical ninja, but that's the best I can do." The man stood up and looked around for a moment. "By the way, you wouldn't by any chance have seen a girl with pink hair and green eyes would've you?" The woman barely managed to crack one eye open, staring at the retired man.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Higure Haruno at your service," the man replied with a bow. Konan's eyes shot open at the name. "Now, about the girl with distinctive pink hair?"

"Sh-she and Naruto ran off," Konan stuttered, "Gaara the Jinchuriki is chasing them." Higure's face hardened, looking down at the rogue shinobi for a moment.

"Thank you."

"W-wait I-," Konan stopped once Higure jumped off. "Damn it…" The kunoichi groaned before trying to look at the scroll on her back. "How the hell does this thing help? It's just hurting worse!"

* * *

Naruto and Sakura, now running along side the former, made a mad dash away from Gaara. Sakura didn't care where she was going, as long as they had any hope of losing this crazy kid she would run.

"Run Sakura," Naruto shouted. Sakura opened her mouth to angrily snap at Naruto.

The blonde quickly flipped around, planting his feet onto the base of a tree before rocketing backwards towards Gaara. The redhead Jinchuriki's eyes widened with shock. Naruto screamed, his fist pulled back, and then delivered a crushing blow across Gaara's face.

To Naruto's horror, this seemed to have little affect. Gaara bellowed with rage, striking Naruto with the back of his arm. The blonde went flying back before he slammed into a tree. Naruto cried out in pain, splinters and chunks of bark flying out from his back. Sakura remained frozen, staring in horror at damage one swat of Gaara's arm had done.

"So, she's important to you is she," Gaara questioned with a malicious tone. The kunoichi trembled, her lower lip quivering as she met the inhuman eyes of Gaara. "I'LL JUST HAVE TO TAKE HER FROM YOU THEN WON'T I?"

"DON'T," Naruto screamed as he shot himself forward.

Gaara threw his massive fist forward. Naruto cried out and was hurled back into the same tree as before. Gaara roared as he threw his other arm at Sakura, his massive hand wrapping around her entire body. The kunoichi cried out until she was slammed against a tree. Sakura whimpered and cried out as Gaara started tightening his grip.

"I will make you watch as all the life fades away from her," Gaara stated with a sadistic, insane voice. "I'm going to make you suffer in every way imaginable Naruto Uzumaki!"

"What the hell is this about? Why do you want to kill me anyway?"

"Because I…I…" Gaara held the side of his head, groaning softly. "I don't…I don't kn-," Gaara's words were replaced by a sharp, head splitting pain that caused him to cry out in agony.

'_Kill Naruto Uzumaki,'_ Tobi's dark voice rang within the Jinchuriki's head. _'Find him and make him suffer. Take him to the edge of sanity and then crush him.'_

"I'LL KILL YOU ALL," Gaara screamed with a wide, bloodthirsty grin.

"Run you idiot," Sakura shouted as loudly as she could, despite her chest being crushed. Gaara chuckled madly as he pulled his arm away, leaving his hand around Sakura and the tree to crush her. The kunoichi barely managed to open her eyes, gazing pleadingly at Naruto.

The blonde looked back at Sakura with a hardened look in his eyes. "There's no way in hell I'm going to run away Sakura-chan!" Naruto lowered his body and raised his fists up. "Even if you're allied with Konoha and me with Akatsuki, I'll always be there to save you!" Sakura's eyes widened with disbelief. She was ready to kill Naruto a moment ago, and he was willing to protect her? "I will protect you Sakura-chan! That's my promise to you…" Sakura opened her mouth to try and find the proper words to say. She didn't know whether to scream at him for being an idiot, or scream that she loved him. Or both.

Gaara broke out in a mad laughter, causing Naruto to snap his eyes back at him. "How can you protect her when you can't even protect yourself?" Gaara pulled his arm back, ready to throw more sand shuriken forward.

Suddenly, a kunai whizzed past Naruto. The blonde's eyes widened with shock, watching the spinning blade fly past him. Gaara hissed, using his arm to shield himself effectively. However, the kunai had a paper bomb attached to it, which went off quickly. A new figure landed next to Naruto, causing the boy to shake his head in shock. The smoke cleared, revealing the explosion had no affect against Gaara.. The Jinchuriki glared past his arm, trying to see who was now behind Naruto.

Sakura gasped with horror when she saw her uncle land next to Naruto on the tree branch. Higure's eyes were fixated on Gaara.

"Who the hell are you," the redheaded Jinchuriki questioned.

"The wrong uncle to piss off," Higure replied with an intense, murderous gaze in his eyes. Sakura couldn't help but feel uneasy when she looked at her uncle right now. She had _never_ seen him so angry before.

Naruto looked up at the older man with confusion. "You're Sakura's uncle?" Higure nodded then looked down at the blonde standing next to him.

"You're Minato's boy…" Once again, Naruto was taken back a bit in confusion.

"Y-you knew my dad?" Higure nodded before snapping his head back at Gaara.

"That's a story for another time though. Right now let's focus on taking this guy down and saving Sakura."

"Um…not that I'm complaining sir, but why are you helping me? Aren't you a shinobi of Konoha?"

"I'm a retired shinobi of Konoha," Higure corrected. "And even if I wasn't I'm an uncle first and a shinobi second." The older man lowered his head, staring forward intently. "You back me up. Let me go out first and get his attention. Did Jiraiya teach you your father's jutsu?" Naruto's eyes widened slightly before he simply nodded. "Use that when I give you an opening, got it?"

"Got it."

"I'll slaughter you both!"

Higure rushed forward, moving in a blur towards Gaara. The Jinchuriki roared as he threw his arm out, sending a dozen sand shuriken forward. Higure's eyes flickered before he twisted around to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack. The retired shinobi scowled, before continuing forward.

Naruto watched carefully, biting his lower lip in anticipation. Could he really go toe-to-toe with Gaara? He was a retired shinobi after all, and he barely dodged that last attack. More importantly, if they did defeat Gaara, would Higure betray him? Would he attack Naruto and turn him over to Konoha once Sakura was safe? The blonde shook his head, clearing his mind of those thoughts. That was his _first_ priority. He had to make sure Sakura was safe first and then he'll worry about Higure.

Gaara threw his arm forward, extending it outward to grab the older shinobi. Higure quickly shot backwards, narrowly avoiding the clutches of the bloodthirsty Jinchuriki. "WIND BULLETS!"

Higure's eyes widened before Gaara's stomach expanded. Before the retired shinobi could react, the Jinchuriki opened his mouth and screamed, unleashing a devastating blast of wind. The bullet of air punched through the trees, reducing branches to splinters and leaves into dust. Higure raised his arms to shield himself, but he too was torn apart by the wind. Gaara sneered with satisfaction. Suddenly, the older man puffed in a cloud of smoke, revealing a log that turned into splinters. Gaara's eyes shot open in alarm before shifting to the side.

The Jinchuriki swung his arm at Higure. The retired shinobi slid forward on his knees, arching his back as Gaara's arm passed by his face. Higure swiftly placed a paper bomb on the branch, between Gaara's legs before launching himself back. The Jinchuriki looked down with horror before the bomb went off, consuming his lower half in a cloud of fire and smoke. Gaara screamed in agony and in anger.

'_How did he know?'_

Higure latched onto a tree branch and spun around before looking back at Gaara, "Now Naruto!"

"I'm way ahead of ya!" Gaara and Higure snapped their heads up, seeing the blonde flying towards Gaara. To the redhead's horror, he saw a swirling vortex of blue chakra in Naruto's hand.

'_He holds pure chakra in his hand?'_ Gaara's tail quickly shot backwards and latched to a faraway tree branch. The Jinchuriki quickly jerked himself away as Naruto got close enough to use his jutsu.

"Damn it," Higure cursed. Naruto landed on the tree branch, scowling as he focused to keep his jutsu active. Gaara cackled madly as the distance between him and Naruto increased.

The blonde closed his eyes, pressing his lips into a hard line. Gaara's gleeful look changed into a confused expression. Naruto's eyes snapped open before he screamed and flung his other arm outward. A series of chains, made from pure chakra, flew out from Naruto's shoulder and wrapped around Gaara's body. The redheaded Jinchuriki gasped with shock, looking at the chains with disbelief.

'_What the…?'_

Higure gapped in shock at what he saw, "That's Kushina's jutsu…"

Naruto screamed with fury as he pulled back with all his might, jerking Gaara back towards him. The redhead looked with horror as he was flying back towards Naruto at an alarming rate. The blonde shot off the tree branch, pulling his swirling orb of chakra back.

"RASENGAN!" The blonde thrusted his arm forward, slamming the jutsu into Gaara's stomach with a thunderous impact.

**

* * *

And cliffhanger! Man, I made a lot of references to the canon at the end without even realizing it. GO ALLUSIONS! For anyone who cares it starts with the "Naruto now," "Way ahead of ya." (think Itachi vs. Naruto and Kakashi). They're very subtle, so don't feel stupid if you don't get them.**

**Before everyone kills me at once, let me apologize for not updating sooner/more often. These past three weeks have kicked my ass something fierce. The week before last I had two quizzes, a midterm and a test in my classes. I spent last week trying to recover from all that, which didn't work too well because of personal drama. And then this week I had two tests, a constitution test (making three total) and one or two quizzes somewhere in there.  
So yeah, college has been beating me over the head here recently. So I apologize for not having more time to update and stuff. Hopefully things will be more peaceful for awhile and I'll have more time to work on my stories. Thank you everyone for being so patient for this chapter to come out. I'll get the next one out relatively soon hopefully. Read and review please =)**


	18. Someone Precious

A thunderous, booming sound echoed throughout the forest as Naruto slammed the swirling chakra ball known as Rasengan into Gaara's gut. The sand Jinchuriki screamed as the orb tore through his demon form and pushed hard into his stomach. The chakra chains around Gaara's body loosened, allowing him to get shot backwards from Naruto's attack. His body spun around, tearing through even the thickest of tree limbs like they were twigs.

Naruto landed firmly on a tree branch, watching as Gaara flew through the forest and out of sight. The boy's eyes snapped to the side when he heard a nearby branch shaking. He saw Higure staring at him with widened eyes of confusion.

"What," Naruto questioned.

"Those," Higure replied, pointing at the chakra chains coming out of his shoulder. Naruto looked down then back up with a seemingly nervous chuckle.

"Cool huh? I made this jutsu myself. Well, not really by myself. I had a LOT of help making it."

"Molding pure chakra into such a complex form would be a challenge," Higure agreed. "I'm assuming you would've had to use a simpler form first. Like ropes right?" Naruto blinked with surprise, his mouth falling open just a bit.

"Y-yeah, how'd you know?"

Higure shrugged, "Lucky guess." Naruto gave a quizzical stare at the older man before he turned his head to where Gaara last was. _'Why wouldn't Jiraiya tell him about his mother? He obviously knows his father. Why not tell him about Kushina…?'_

A murderous, booming scream echoed over the forest, causing Higure and Naruto to snap their heads up in alarm. A cloud of dust rose up, higher than most buildings and towering over the trees in the forest. Higure scowled while Naruto simply gapped in awe. A massive arm made of hardened sand tore through the smoke, revealing a fully enlarged Shukaku sand demon.

"Naruto…Uzumaki!" Gaara drugged his claws across the forest, hoping to get lucky and hit his target. "WHERE ARE YOU!"

"Please tell me you have a plan," Naruto whispered in the meekest of voices.

"At the moment: no…" The two looked up at the towering behemoth before them, blocking out the sun. "Although I really wish I did…"

* * *

Haku flipped back as one of the redhead's giants bashed through the wall of a nearby home. He looked over at his fellow Akatsuki shinobi, who were taking on the other two giants while the third focused on him. Haku then looked up at the redhead who was playing her flute, the wind blowing her hair while her piercing eyes scanned each of the battles in front of her.

"This is a lot harder than I'd like it to be," Haku murmured. The black haired boy shot forward, heading towards his opponent.

Tayuya's eyes snapped to the black haired boy, the melody becoming quicker and sharper. One giant dove after Haku, who nimbly flipped between its fingers. The ice user skidded across the ground. Haku quickly threw six needles at Tayuya and then jumped away from the giant's strike.

The redhead was forced to jump back, disrupting her jutsu for a moment. "Damn it," she cursed. In that moment, Haku landed across from Tayuya and charged. The redhead quickly put her flute up to her lips, but it was too late.

She was forced to duck under Haku's punch. In retaliation, Tayuya threw her fist at Haku's stomach. The black haired boy caught her by the wrist and spun her around. The redhead screamed as she threw her foot up by Haku's head. The boy's eyes widened before he quickly ducked. Haku pushed his shoulder into Tayuya's gut and swiftly rolled the kunoichi over his back and onto the ground. The redhead grunted as she hit with a thud on her back. Haku quickly spun around and knelt down over the kunoichi, holding needles between each finger and pointing them directly above her forehead.

Haku's eyes shifted as the other Akatsuki shinobi landed around him for support. "I'm fine," Haku insisted. "Go help Zabuza-san!" The ninjas nodded before darting off.

"Son of a bitch," Tayuya cursed as she squirmed under Haku. "I'm gonna beat the living shit out of you!" Haku tilted his head to the side with a puzzled look on his face.

"How did a beautiful girl like you get such a foul mouth?"

Tayuya's scowl hardened, "Screw off!"

"That didn't answer my question." Tayuya angrily spat at Haku's face. The boy quickly jerked his head to the side as the wad passed by him. "You're really aggressive you know that?"

"No shit smart-ass." Haku opened his mouth to speak but a distant, and still booming, sound caused him and Tayuya to whip their heads around. Miles outside of the village, the two saw a massive demon made of sand had just emerged out of nowhere. "Holy fuck…"

"You said it," Haku muttered in agreement.

* * *

On the roof of the Hokage's mansion, Danzo stood next to his allies, staring out at the massive beast that had just emerged outside of his village. Around the village leaders was a large regiment of ANBU and high ranking ninja from the other villages.

Danzo's single eye stared at the Shukaku in the distance. The old man's expression was a stone-faced, solemn one. Sasori had his arms crossed and his lips pressed together in a firm line. The Kazekage looked over at the back of the Hokage's head.

"Did Akatsuki do this," Sasori questioned.

"I can't be sure," Danzo replied swiftly. Sasori scoffed, turning away from the old man.

"Then who was that Tobi fellow to you," the young Kage questioned. Danzo made no response to Sasori's question. The puppeteer continued: "After Tobi, Kisame, and the Mizukage left you seemed very upset. Not at the fact that the Mizukage left, but I noticed that the whole time Tobi was before us, you watched only him."

"Form a team to set up a perimeter around the village to focus on Gaara," Danzo whispered to one of his captains. Sasori growled in anger, infuriated by the fact that this old man just ignored him. "Make sure he doesn't get into the village in that state." The ANBU nodded then sprung away with two others, while Sasori's glare hardened.

'_Damn old man. You keep too many secrets for your own good…'_

* * *

Kakashi and Yahiko screamed as they swung their swords at one another. The blades met and skidded against one another, sparks flying out between them. Both combatants jumped back and sprung off of the walls behind them. Once again, their blades met as they passed one another.

Obito pulled his head back and sprung backwards, but Guy was hot on his heels. The spiky haired Uchiha had no trouble dodging his opponent's attacks, thanks to his Sharingan, but the Blood Red Beast was very tenacious in his assault. Due to this, Obito had no real opportunity to counteract. The Uchiha then decided to make a bold move.

Obito started to perform a series of hand signs. Guy's eyes flickered as he threw a punch at the Uchiha's hands, trying to throw off his seals. Thankfully, Obito managed to continue the hand signs while moving his arms around to avoid Guy disrupting his jutsu. The taijutsu master's eyes widened as he realized what jutsu Obito was about to perform.

"Fireball jutsu," the Akatsuki shinobi shouted.

Guy stopped his assault and started pacing backwards. Obito threw his head to the ground, breathing a massive wave of fire that hit the ground. The flames spread across the ground, creating a makeshift perimeter on the ground that prevented Guy from attacking him. The force of the fireball out of his mouth pushed Obito away from the ground. He stopped his jutsu and flipped backwards, landing on a nearby wall while staring at Guy through the fire.

Itachi grabbed Kabuto by the wrist, pushed the shinobi's arm up and spun beneath it, slicing across his stomach. Kabuto cried out as he fell forward as Itachi spun around behind him. The medic rolled forward before whirling around to face Itachi. Kabuto's shirt had been literally worn away to rags, due to surviving an explosion at point blank and Itachi's continual strikes with the kunai. The Kazekage's assistant was rather annoyed that he could land a hit on Itachi. However, Kabuto knew that the Sharingan could see a person's chakra, and no doubt Itachi saw the chakra that flowed around the medic's hands. All Kabuto needed was a single hit and then it would be all over.

Neji and Sasuke traded blows with one another, neither landing a single hit. Punches and kicks grazed their bodies as they moved swiftly between each other's attacks. Neji threw his open palm forward which Sasuke leaped over. While the Uchiha was above the Hyuga's head, he quickly performed the necessary seals to launch a fireball at Neji. The Hyuga Akatsuki swiftly thrusted his arm upward, and with a forceful cry sent a burst of chakra that turned the fireball into a few flickers.

Sasuke landed behind Neji and lunged forward, screaming like a banshee. Neji turned and barely managed to block one of Sasuke's strikes with his forearm. Neji quickly retaliated by throwing a kick up by Sasuke's head. The Uchiha ducked under it and threw his right fist forward. Neji faced Sasuke just in time. He grabbed the Uchiha's arm with one hand, and quickly delivered four lightning fast jabs all around his arm to block chakra flow. Sasuke cried out and quickly pried his arm away and sprung back to distance himself from Neji.

"Is that all you've got," Neji questioned. "Konoha's famed last Uchiha turns out to be nothing more than a wimp."

"I'll show you," Sasuke bellowed.

Despite the searing pain coursing through his arm, Sasuke lifted both arms up to perform a series of hand seals. Neji's eyes narrowed in curiosity. Sasuke lowered his left arm to the ground. To Neji's shock, a huge amount of chakra started to gather up in his opponent's hand. Lightning started to form around Sasuke's hand. The Uchiha looked up, his Sharingan flaring as he focused in on Neji.

"It can't be," the Hyuga whispered.

"GET READY TO DIE!" Sasuke sprinted forward as fast as he possibly could. Neji hunkered down into the Hyuga's rotation stance. Neji had heard of Kakashi Hatake's legendary Lightning Blade, and he could only assume that this was that technique.

'_I have no idea if this'll work, but…'_ Neji waited until Sasuke got closer before he started to spin. "Rotation!" Before the chakra barrier could even be emitted, Sasuke shot right over Neji's head. The Hyuga stopped after sending out a small wave of chakra and looked to where Sasuke was heading. Neji's eyes widened with realization, seeing Sasuke's _real_ target. "ITACHI!"

Itachi's eyes widened with alarm, turning his head to the sound of his name. He saw his little brother charging at him with a hand shrouded in lightning, immediately recognizing the jutsu. Itachi turned to face his brother, hearing the approaching footsteps of Kabuto behind him.

"Chidori," Sasuke boomed as he lunged forward.

Itachi crouched as low to the ground as he could and grabbed his brother by the wrist. Using Sasuke's momentum, Itachi threw his brother over his shoulder, not slowing down his speed at all, and threw the younger Uchiha towards Kabuto. The medic's face was suddenly stricken with alarm as he tried to stop himself and get away. Sasuke's face was stricken with horror and rage, realizing his attack would be used on an ally and not his traitorous brother. Sasuke's Chidori struck right in Kabuto's gut, releasing a huge wave of lightning from the point of impact. Kabuto cried out in pain until the chakra from the jutsu faded out.

Itachi watched carefully as Sasuke pulled his hand away, letting the Kazekage's assistant hit the ground in a heap. Kabuto wasn't dead, but he wasn't going to get up any time soon either. Itachi looked at his little brother who was now burning with anger. Neji rushed next to Itachi for support, though they both knew he didn't need it.

"I'm going to kill you traitor," Sasuke stated.

"You can't kill me," Itachi replied bluntly.

"Watch me!" Sasuke rushed forward, yelling the entire way towards Itachi. The younger brother threw a punch, which Itachi knocked away with his forearm. The older brother then elbowed Sasuke across the face, extending his arm forcefully and quickly to throw his brother down next to Kabuto.

Sasuke groaned, barely conscious at this point, as he tried to get on his feet. Neji looked up at Itachi, whose face was hardened. Neji knew Itachi too well to know he was hurting on the inside. "Let's go," Itachi finally whispered. "We can't stay here for long."

"Right," Neji replied with a nod. The two quickly turned and sprung towards the outer gates of Konoha. While moving through the forest, Neji looked over at Itachi again, noticing his features had softened a bit. "Itachi-san…you can't beat yourself up over something like this you know."

"I know. But he's my brother." Neji lowered his eyes and then turned his head away. The boy didn't know what else he could say in all honesty. Maybe Hana would straighten Itachi out once they got back.

* * *

Gaara screamed as he threw his arm forward, using his massive claw to rip a giant chunk of the forest out by its roots. Higure and Naruto grunted as they flipped backwards, landing on another tree branch. "You can't hide from me Naruto! SHOW YOURSELF!"

"This is insane," the young Uzumaki stated. "What ranking were you before you retired?"

"I was a Jonin," Higure answered. "But that was thirteen years ago. And in my defense I've never fought an opponent bigger than my house before."

"Great, so one thirteen year old kid and a retired old man against this giant monster that's fucking insane! Boy today is just my lucky fucking day!" Higure shifted his eyes over to Naruto who was focused on the colossal beast.

'_He certainly has his mother's mouth…'_

"What about a summon or something," Naruto asked, looking back at Higure.

"Hey, you learned under Jiraiya not me."

"So what?"

Higure sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose before looking back at Naruto, "Jiraiya, the toad sage. The guy who summons massive toads that are, oh I dunno, about as big as Gaara is now."

"Oh…right…" The blonde quickly turned away, moving his gaze as far away from the older man as possible. Higure gave a deadpanned stare at Naruto.

"He never taught you the summoning technique did he…?"

"No, not really…he probably should have." Higure opened his mouth to respond, but looked up when a giant shadow covered him and Naruto. The retired shinobi quickly dove towards Naruto, grabbed the boy, and sprinted away from Gaara's massive hand. The ground shook before Higure placed Naruto back on the ground. "This is crap! What are we supposed to do against something this big!"

"I have an idea: let's just whine about how FREAKING BIG IT IS!"

"WELL I DON'T SEE YOU COMING UP WITH AN IDEA," Naruto shouted, leaning forward into Higure's face.

"HEY, YOU'RE THE ONE WHO PISSED THIS GUY OFF: NOT ME!" Naruto opened his mouth to scream back, but the sound of Sakura's pained cry caused both of them to look back in the forest. Sakura was still pinned to the tree by Gaara's sand, and was drifting in and out of consciousness due to the pressure on her lungs.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto murmured.

Higure narrowed his eyes towards his niece for a moment. He lowered his head to the ground, staring in silence. Naruto looked at him carefully, wondering if he was trying to think of a plan now or if he was just worried. Regardless, Naruto lowered his head and eyes to the ground, his mind running through every possible idea he had. Suddenly, the young Jinchuriki's face lit up and he snapped his head towards Higure.

"I got it!"

"Let's hear it."

Sakura whimpered, cracking one eye open to look over towards Naruto and Higure. The blonde was whispering something to the older man. She still had no idea what to think of those two working together. She was still angry that Naruto had been lying about everything, but after his speech a few minutes ago about not abandoning her, she didn't know what to really think of him. But the fact that Higure was working with him meant that he was trustworthy at least right?

"That's a long shot kid," Higure murmured.

"I know, but it can work if I can get close enough! Which is the only real problem…"

"Leave that to me." Higure turned his back to Naruto and lowered down a bit. "Jump on, I'll get you there." The Jinchuriki tilted his head to the side in confusion. Was he seriously going to piggy-back all the way to Gaara?

Naruto opened his mouth to smart off, but turned around when he heard a head-splitting sound. Gaara's claw was tearing through the forest, breaking trees like dead twigs. Higure swiftly grabbed Naruto and threw the boy on his back. With two swift hand signs, Higure shot forward, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs, clinging onto Higure's shoulders for dear life. The boy's cheeks were flapping and his hair looked like it would fly out of their roots at any moment. Everything in front of him and around him was a constant blur. Naruto had no idea where he was or where the hell he was going.

For a brief second, everything was still. Naruto gasped for a second wind, but wasted it when he started screaming again as he and Higure rocketed into the air. The boy was barely able to watch as they soared into the air. Soon, instead of a constant blur, Naruto saw the light blue and white colors of the sky. They started to slow down again, and Naruto took the opportunity to look at Higure.

"What the hell just happened?"

"Is that really what you're worried about?" Naruto gaze a quizzical look before Higure pointed forward. The blonde looked up, seeing a massive claw of sand coming for them. Naruto shrieked as loud as he possibly could.

Naruto's screaming was stopped when his head was jerked backwards. He looked down, seeing Higure shooting a stream of wind out of his mouth which was pushing them upward. Naruto looked back to Gaara's hand just as it started to close in around them. The blonde closed his eyes, preparing for the worse.

Luckily, the two managed to fly between Gaara's fingers. Higure flipped around then landed on Gaara's arm. Naruto opened his eyes and looked around, seeing that he wasn't in free fall anymore.

"Get ready," Higure snapped.

Naruto shook his head then quickly flipped over Higure, landing in front of the older man, "Right, let's do this!"

Naruto sprinted forward, with Higure right behind him. Gaara's eyes widened with anger, a low growl bubbling in his throat. Naruto crossed his fingers, forming a group of shadow clones to confuse or distract the behemoth of a Jinchuriki. The spikes that formed Gaara's arm pulled up and shot forward, impaling the group of Naruto's. The real Naruto managed to avoid the strike and quickly made more clones which were destroyed just as quickly as they were made.

A spike shot towards the real Naruto, causing him to grind to a halt. Naruto raised his arms in an attempt to shield himself from the attack. Suddenly, something grabbed the boy by the back of his collar and threw him off his feet. Naruto cried out, eyes shooting open in alarm. He looked up, seeing that Higure grabbed him and jumped over Gaara's attack.

"Don't stop moving," Higure snapped, pushing Naruto ahead.

The blonde didn't waste time with a reply and ran forward. The sand on Gaara's arm started to rise up. Eventually they took the form of nearly a dozen Gaara's and rushed forward. Naruto made an equal amount of copies which rushed ahead of him and Higure. The clones clashed with one another, allowing Higure and the real Naruto to slip between them.

Gaara roared in outright fury, jutting up countless spikes in the direction of Naruto and Higure. Naruto jumped and spun sideways in midair between the spikes while Higure ducked and rolled underneath them. The two continued forward, getting ever closer to Gaara.

"Giant sand tsunami," Gaara roared. The sand from the Jinchuriki's arm and shoulder started to roll off, forming a massive tidal wave that blocked Naruto and Higure's path.

"Oh crap," Naruto shouted as the sand started to move forward. Higure quickly grabbed the boy's arm, spun him around while falling onto his back. The blonde sputtered in confusion and fear as his back faced Higure. He felt the older man's feet on his back and then was quickly shot up into the air, high above the wave of sand and Gaara himself.

Higure rolled backwards onto his feet then dove off of Gaara's arm, turning around to look up at Naruto. _'Make it count kid…'_

Naruto quickly realized his opportunity and pulled his arm back, gathering his chakra. With an angry scream, Naruto threw his arm forward, unleashing a series of chakra chains from his arm and shoulder which flew towards Gaara's face. The giant demon hissed in confusion as he saw the attack coming towards him. To Gaara's shock, the chakra chains passed right through his sand.

"What in the," Gaara started to ask himself. His question was answered as soon as he felt something wrap around his body. It didn't take more than a second for Gaara to realize what was happening.

"COME ON OUTTA THERE!" Naruto pulled his arm back with all his might, sensing his chains wrapped around Gaara's true form. The chains pulled back, bringing Gaara out of his armor. Naruto managed to get the redhead's upper body out before it was suddenly stopped. "What the!"

Gaara's eyes were wide with fury, focusing in on Naruto. The only thing keeping Gaara to his Shukaku form was the fact he used his sand to bind him down to the ground. "Naruto Uzumaki…I will KILL YOU!" Gaara grabbed the chains that wrapped around his body and pulled on them, jerking Naruto forward.

The blonde cried out as he was being pulled towards Gaara. The redhead used his hands and sand, grabbing onto the chains and pulling Naruto towards him at a rapid rate. More sand started to snake outward, preparing to encase Naruto as soon as he got close enough. Naruto used his other hand, trying to pull back on his chains, but he had no leverage with which to use. Finally, Naruto got close enough for Gaara to wrap his sand around. The redhead pulled his fellow Jinchuriki in close enough to stare right through his eyes. Naruto grunted and tried to break free, but the sand was too strong. Gaara grabbed Naruto's chin and forced the blonde to look at him.

"Any last words before I kill you," Gaara questioned. To his shock: Naruto actually grinned.

"Just one…" In that instant, Naruto erupted in a cloud of smoke. Gaara's eyes nearly popped out of his head in alarm. The redhead turned around, seeing another Naruto falling towards him with a familiar blue orb in hand.

"RASENGAN!"

Gaara moved to throw his arms up in an attempt to shield himself, but Naruto was a second ahead. He slammed the jutsu into Gaara's back, causing him to cry out in pain. The chakra erupted, attempting to break free and explode outward, but Naruto held the chakra in a little longer. Finally, Naruto pushed Gaara out of his Shukaku form. The massive demon of sand froze as Naruto and Gaara started to fall towards the ground. Slowly, the sand demon started to crumble and fall apart.

On the ground, Higure flipped around and a gust of wind erupted beneath his feet just before he landed. He looked up, seeing Naruto and Gaara falling towards the ground with a massive wave of sand falling behind them.

'_Well, he certainly has a lot of his mother in him. Only an Uzumaki would think of a strategy like that. If that boy ever learned Minato's Flying Thunder God technique then he could become a very serious threat.'_

Naruto and Gaara landed in the tops of two separate trees across from one another. Gaara winced and panted heavily as he pushed himself up, glaring up at Naruto who slowly rose to his feet. The blonde turned towards Gaara, staring at him with hardened eyes.

"I…I won't allow you to beat me," Gaara wheezed. "I will kill you!" Naruto sighed, relaxing his body a bit as he stared at Gaara.

"Give up," Naruto stated. "You've lost. You can't win like this."

"NO! I'm going to kill you! Only by killing you can I truly feel alive! I will wipe out your existence to prove my own! I can only be strong by fighting for myself, killing for nobody other than myself!"

"Yeah, that's been working out well for you recently hasn't it," Naruto smugly replied.

Gaara roared in rage as he shot forward. Naruto cried out, also springing forward. The two opponents pulled their fists back. Their fists impacted the others' face with all their individual might. The two Jinchuriki flew the opposite direction, falling below the trees and hitting the ground with a heavy thud.

Gaara rolled across the ground, letting out a sigh of pain. The redhead slowly turned his head, unable to move the rest of his body. To his shock, he saw Naruto slowly pushing himself off the ground. Gaara gasped in shock, trembling lightly with fear before the blonde stood up on his feet. Naruto's intense blue eyes set in on Gaara. The blonde slowly started approaching Gaara, who could only watch with terror coursing through his veins.

"N-no! Stay away!" Naruto ignored Gaara's pleas and continued towards the redhead with hardened eyes.

* * *

Konan slowly pushed herself up on her hands once the scrolls earlier placed on her back wore off. She had to admit that she felt better than before, though her back was still a bit sore. Konan looked up to the sky, no longer seeing the massive demon that she had no doubt was Gaara. The fact it was no longer there meant that Naruto beat Gaara. A smile crossed her lips, a smile of pride. The boy had certainly come a long way.

"Konan," a voice called out. The blue haired kunoichi turned, seeing Itachi and Neji coming through the bushed behind her. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine now," Konan answered Itachi. "We need to keep moving towards the checkpoint."

"Where's Naruto," Neji questioned.

"Well let's hope we find him on the way there. Come on." Konan rose to her feet and ran forward with Itachi and Neji behind her.

* * *

"Shinra Tensei," Nagato cried out. With a thrust of his arm, the redhead took out a huge section of Konoha's wall. The Akatsuki shinobi turned around, blocked an enemy's punch and then socked the Chunin in the face. "Everyone come on, we're getting out of here!"

Hana turned her head towards Nagato, but an enemy shinobi came up from behind and wrapped his arms around her midsection. Hana snarled and started thrashing around violently to try and break free from her captor's grip. A second shinobi ran forward with a sword and thrusted it towards Hana's chest. The young Inuzuka quickly threw her leg to the side, knocking the sword's direction off, as well as the shinobi's balance. Hana used the force from her kick to pull her body around and threw the shinobi holding her off her back and onto the ground.

"On the way," Hana breathlessly, and casually, replied before brushing a loose strand of hair out of her face.

Obito moved behind Yahiko who backed up slowly, eyes fixated on the approaching Konoha and Suna shinobi. The orange haired man quickly made a series of hand signs and slammed his palms together. "Water style: water shockwave jutsu!" The man shot a powerful and intense stream of water out of his mouth which quickly washed over the roads and started to flood a large portion of block. The shinobi were carried off down the stream, pushing them away from the gates.

"What about the others," Obito asked.

"I sent out a pair of summons to get them," Nagato replied. "They're fine, trust me!"

Yahiko stopped his jutsu and turned to Obito and Nagato, "Let's move out!" The shinobi quickly started to rush out of the hole in the wall just as the Konoha shinobi started pursuing them.

* * *

Haku stood nervously with his arms crossed tightly over his chest. The boy looked at his surroundings nervously, as though something might come out at any second. "You okay," Zabuza asked.

"Yes, I'm just…a bit freaked out."

"First time inside of an animal's stomach," Jiraiya asked quizzically. Haku nodded to the Sannin who simply grinned in response. "You get use to it." While Haku was grateful they had a quick exit strategy, being inside the stomach of a giant centipede burrowing underground was a bit much.

"You think the others will make it out okay," Zabuza asked Jiraiya. "I mean we're in the clear, but Konoha had to set up outer defenses and they most likely have shinobi patrolling outside for any stragglers."

"We expected as much," Jiraiya replied as he raised a finger up, "Which is why we set up traps in the areas where we'd be running through. Also we had a group outside the village during the Chunin Exams who made more traps whenever they were set off, or picked off any patrols in the area. I'd say the others are pretty much set."

"If you say so Master Jiraiya," Zabuza murmured.

* * *

Gaara screamed as he tried to get his body to move, but to no avail. Naruto stood over the redhead, looking down at him with pity. Gaara eventually gave up and looked up into the eyes of his fellow Jinchuriki.

"Why…what is it that allowed you to defeat me? Was it that old man…?"

"No. We both had something worth fighting for. The second you put Sakura-chan in danger, I had to beat you in order to save her."

"Fighting…for another…?"

"Fighting for a cause, a noble cause, or for someone you love will always be stronger than fighting for selfish reasons or for yourself. That's what the Will of Fire is: fighting for your fellow comrade, your ally, the weak or defenseless, fighting for people who need someone to fight for them. That's why I beat you, and that's why Akatsuki is going to liberate the world, and that's why I'm going to beat down that old man Danzo!"

Gaara's eyes were focused on Naruto, and his mouth hung open slightly at hearing the boy's speech. The redhead looked down solemnly, "So what're you waiting for…kill me. Kill me to save the person you love." Naruto's fists tightened as he thought the idea over.

The next word the blonde spoke shocked Gaara to his very core: "No…" The redheaded Jinchuriki looked up, complete and utter confusion written across his face. "You're a Jinchuriki like me. The Pervy Sage told me that in every village that Jinchuriki are treated like dirt, and they're blamed for the destruction the demon inside of them caused. Even in Akatsuki, there are people who treat me like the nine tailed fox inside of me." Gaara gasped lightly.

'_H-him too…?'_

"I know what you went through with people blaming you for everything. That's a burden no child should have to bare. But it's one that Jinchuriki have to carry because of this world. Danzo and his kind create wars, which means new weapons and jutsus have to be created in order to win the war. That created the Jinchuriki: us.

"The only thing that kept me from turning out like you…was probably the great friends I made." The faces of Neji, Kiba, Jiraiya, Nagato, Obito, Konan, and the others went through Naruto's head, bringing a warm smile to his face. "You don't have any friends do you…?" Gaara slowly shook his head in response. Naruto knelt down, a newfound kindness in his eyes. "I'll be your friend, if you'll let me Gaara…" The redhead found himself unable to think straight. He hardly even noticed the tears rolling down his face. Naruto's eyes closed as he grinned and laughed lightly.

* * *

Sakura's head bobbed up and down slowly, darkness consuming everything. Suddenly, the sand that had been crushing her crumbled away quickly. The kunoichi fell to the tree branch, gasping quickly to allow air back into her lungs. Sakura panted heavily, her head spinning as oxygen started to flood back to it. The kunoichi looked around in confusion, "What…what just happened…?"

* * *

Gaara's eyes softened, no longer full of malicious blood thirst, "I've released her. The girl is safe and alive…" Naruto's eyes opened and the smile still remained. "I…I want to be your friend Naruto Uzumaki…"

"Alright," Naruto replied as he grabbed Gaara's arm. The blonde grunted as he lifted Gaara off the ground, holding him against his side. Naruto laughed as he looked at Gaara, causing the Jinchuriki to give him a quizzical look. "I guess I should welcome you to Akatsuki huh?"

Gaara's lip twitch, trying to form a slight smirk before he nodded. Naruto looked ahead, but froze when he saw Higure walking by. The retired shinobi stopped and looked over at the two Jinchuriki. The three stared at each other, neither saying a single word to one another.

"Uh…S-Sakura-chan is safe now," Naruto finally spoke.

"Okay," Higure replied, turning his head forward. The older man looked back, a smirk coming across his lips, "I'll be sure to tell her you said hello." A grin of disbelief crossed Naruto's face. Higure gave a slight wave to Naruto before running off to check on Sakura.

"Well friend, you ready to leave," Naruto asked, turning to Gaara. The redhead looked back and nodded again. Naruto walked the opposite direction.

Gaara shifted his eyes towards Naruto, who was beaming with happiness. _'Naruto Uzumaki…thank you…'_

Behind Naruto and Gaara, Zetsu started to bubble up out of the ground, staring at the two Jinchuriki. "That brat broke the genjutsu with nothing but talk!"

"Madara isn't going to be happy," the black half replied. "Let's report back to him."

"Right." Zetsu started to sink back into the ground, leaving the destroyed forest behind.

* * *

Higure ran along the ground, trying to remember where Sakura was exactly. He came into a clearing and stopped in front of three shinobi. Konan froze, staring at Higure with narrowed eyes while Itachi and Neji looked on with confusion. Higure crossed his arms as he examined Konan.

"Well, you're looking well," the retired shinobi finally replied. "Naruto's that way," he added, pointing over his shoulder.

"Thank you," Konan spoke with a nod. Neji and Itachi exchanged a quick glance to one another before looking back at Konan. "Come on boys." The three rushed forward, towards Higure.

As she passed him, Higure and Konan exchanged a quick glance to one another. Konan still had no clue why a retired Konoha shinobi would help her, and Naruto too apparently. Still, she wouldn't question it at the moment.

"Who was that Konan-san," Neji asked.

"He…helped me earlier. I guess you could say I owe him one." Itachi remained silent, daring another glance back over his shoulder.

* * *

Higure continued through the surrounding area, trying to find his niece. "Damn it, where are you…?"

"Uncle…" Higure's head snapped around, seeing Sakura wobbling out into the clearing. "Is that you…?" Higure rushed over next to Sakura, catching her before she hit the ground.

"Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine. What happened to the Jinchuriki?" Higure rolled his eyes before lifting his niece up and putting her on his back.

"You have no reason to worry about any of that right now. Let's get you home and fixed up before you concern yourself with village affairs."

"You let them get away," Sakura whispered. Higure remained silent, pushing Sakura up his back a bit before walking back towards the village. Sakura was now extremely upset, scowling at the back of her uncle's head. "How could you? Naruto is Konoha's Jinchuriki and Gaara Suna's. You realize that if Danzo were to find out that you could be executed!"

"Well, it's a good thing you're the only one who knows this," Higure casually remarked. Sakura huffed, resting her cheek against the back of her uncle's neck. "Besides, Naruto isn't that bad of a guy. He helped me save you. Hell, he _did_ save you." Sakura's eyes softened a bit, memories of her time together with Ryu coming into her mind. These images were followed by Naruto's speech about how he promised to save her no matter what.

"He still killed my father," Sakura muttered.

"No, that was the Kyuubi that killed your father," Higure replied with a hardened tone. "Naruto is completely different from that monster." The older man looked back over his shoulder, "If anything you should see Naruto as a hero who's keeping that monster locked up and preventing it from killing anyone else's father." Sakura huffed bitterly. "I know you're mad that Naruto lied to you, but he did fight tooth and nail to save you. He even worked with some retired shinobi of Konoha, who he didn't know if he could trust or not. That shows that he does care for you on some level. If you're angry at Naruto, be angry at the boy, not the demon inside of him."

"How can you defend him…? He's a traitor to the village." Higure sighed, closing his eyes for a brief moment.

"You're going to learn one day that there are more important things in the world than the village. That's why I retired: to take care of you and your mother after your father died. I didn't care how mad Danzo was: family comes first."

"Naruto isn't family," Sakura stated.

"Maybe not, but his parents were our best friends." Sakura's eyes flickered a bit with shock. "Your mother, father, and I were all friends with both of Naruto's parents. They were like our family, and Naruto was too before he was taken from the village."

"So it'd be like incest if he and I _did_ actually go out," Sakura joked. Higure smiled, rolling his eyes. At least her humor was back.

"Not like that idiot. Besides, I know you totally like him." Sakura elbowed her uncle in the shoulder, causing him to laugh a bit. "Just keep something in mind Sakura. I know you're eager to blame Naruto for the Kyuubi's sins, but just so you know: you're mother never held Naruto responsible for Satoru's death." Sakura's eyes lit up and widened in shock. She leaned back, staring at the back of Higure's head. The older man turned his head, looking at Sakura out of the corner of his eye, "True story."

Sakura sighed in defeat before letting herself rest against her uncle's back. She never realized how tired she was up until that moment. The Chunin Exams, Akatsuki's interruption, having to run through the village and around various skirmishes between the village and Akatsuki, confronting Naruto, and almost dying finally took its toll. Sakura closed her eyes, letting out a soft sigh before she drifted off into sleep.

* * *

The pursuit of Akatsuki was called off, due to the high number of casualties in and around the village. The reports of traps set up that took out handfuls of shinobi at a time also contributed to the retreat. Piles of bodies littered the streets, and a few buildings were destroyed in the crossfire between the two forces. All the hospitals were busy with healing injured shinobi with more and more injuries coming in by the minute.

The battle was officially over, and Akatsuki had gotten away. Something Danzo was not pleased about. The Hokage looked out of his window in anger. Behind him was Orochimaru, Sasori, Kabuto, and Hanzo. Sasori was obviously less than pleased, seeing as how the battle was nearly an hour ago and there had been no word of Gaara's whereabouts.

"This…was an obvious setback," Danzo murmured.

"It's also a serious blow to the village," Hanzo added. "With you, the Hokage and Konoha as the central power in the alliance, there's the possibility that some of our alliances might waver."

"Not only that, but the Land of Lightning will try and join with the Mizukage to declare war on us," Orochimaru added.

"And with the loss of my Jinchuriki, our power is down severely," Sasori bitterly concluded. "The Land of Lightning and Water both have two Jinchuriki, making four against three now."

"Indeed…it seems that if we want even the slightest chance of standing against the alliance between Lightning and Water that we may have to insure that that old Tsuchikage doesn't get any ideas."

"What're you thinking," Orochimaru questioned.

"Perhaps…the same thing we did for Sasori," Danzo suggested. "If there's the slightest chance Onoki could betray us, then we should kill him and replace him with a more loyal Tsuchikage."

"Such an action is reckless unless this new Tsuchikage can also lead Iwagakure through a war," Hanzo stated. "Onoki has been alive during all the wars so far, so he knows more than any other in the village."

"Perhaps killing the old man is the wrong move," Kabuto suggested. "Onoki and the people of Iwagakure have one major loyalty: their village. All we have to do is convince him that betraying us is a bad idea."

"Most likely his history with the Fourth Raikage, as well as the Mizukage and Raikage's unforgiving attitude, would prevent Onoki or Iwagakure from benefiting in anyway except for the fact they get to live," Sasori stated. "The question is would the old fart believe something like that?"

"I'll sent in a team to Iwagakure just to make sure," Danzo stated. "Under the pretenses, of course, of checking for Akatsuki activity."

"I want to send some of my shinobi as well," Sasori swiftly replied. "Taking down a Kage is no small feat, even for a team of Konoha shinobi. Plus it would help to enforce your little lie."

"Very well," Danzo agreed. "Now this business with Akatsuki must be dealt with quickly. We need to contain it before they get out of hand."

"And if nothing else: get Gaara back for me." Danzo nodded again in agreement with Sasori.

"The three that confronted Danzo are the leaders of a group of rogues from my village," Hanzo spoke. "Akatsuki emerged from citizens of my village, and I'll put every last shinobi I have to search the country to find any trace of them."

"Very good," Danzo stated. "First we'll insure Onoki's alliance with us, and then we'll search for Akatsuki."

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes skeptically, "What about the Raikage and Mizukage?"

"Until the moment comes where we're sure they've declared war on us, Akatsuki is our first priority. They infiltrated my village, flaunted my own Jinchuriki in my face and they think they can get away that easily? I think not…" The Hokage turned to the others, "We all have our duties: get to work and prepare for war…" The four bowed their heads and left the Hokage's office.

Sasori quickly stormed out of the room first, with Kabuto quickly at his stead. Hanzo calmly walked down the hall while Orochimaru looked back at the door. His mentor was wise for deciding not to focus on a war that may not happen, but was a fool for not preparing for it nonetheless.

"Kabuto," Sasori whispered.

"Yes sir," the assistant replied.

"Send out a scroll to find our _old_ friend."

Kabuto blinked with shock, "Y-you mean…?"

"Yes. I have a mission for him…"

* * *

Miles outside of the Land of Fire, a series of small fires were lit in the middle of a forest clearing. The Akatsuki invasion force had met at the checkpoint, all safe and sound. Old friends conversed about the events that they went through in the village, the shinobi they fought and much more.

Kiba sat at a fire across from Neji. The former rubbed at his cheeks furiously, trying to get the makeup off his cheeks so he could proudly display his clan markings. "Be careful, otherwise you might rub your face off," Neji joked.

"Oh shut up," Kiba snapped. "Tsunade better have a way to get this crap off or else!"

"Or else what," Neji questioned, "You know she could beat you with a flick of her finger." Kiba huffed, crossing his arms in defeat. Neji looked at his friend for a moment, catching Kiba glancing over across the campsite. Neji followed the direction of his gaze and saw Hana resting her head on Itachi's shoulder. "Oh come on, that's what you're upset about?"

"I don't like it," Kiba murmured.

"Oh grow up you baby." Hanabi walked up with a bowl of soup she had gotten and sat next to Neji.

"I wish to thank you both again for getting me out of the village," Hanabi spoke in her soft voice. "And of course for removing my curse mark." The little girl pointed up to her now empty forehead with a smile on her face.

"Well leaving could've been easier if _somebody_ didn't blow our cover," Kiba taunted, grinning at Neji.

"Shut up."

"I mean come on, you were the one preaching to us about how we need to be subtle and crap, and you're the one who ended up blowing our cover! How awesome is that?"

"Your sister is dating Itachi." Kiba's grin vanished, replaced by a hardened glare. Now it was Neji's turn to grin in satisfaction. "So what do you think of the new guys?"

"Who, the psychopath, the psychopath with the big sword, or the girly looking guy," Kiba asked.

"All of them."

"Well there's a psychopath, a psychopath with a big sword, and a-,"

"Oh shut up smart-ass," Neji snapped. "If you're not going to give a serious answer then just say 'I dunno'."

"Naruto-kun seems to get along with Gaara very well," Hanabi stated. "They were behind me in the line, and Naruto seemed very kind to him."

"Naruto's always been like that," Kiba replied nonchalantly.

"He has a gift," Neji added with a smile, looking back over his shoulder to look at Naruto. "No matter who the person is, Naruto can make a bond with them in no time at all, or turn a person's life completely around."

Naruto waited on the side of the line for Gaara, who was getting a bowl of ramen. The cook held the bowel out. Gaara took it and bowed his head, "Thank you…" The Jinchuriki then walked towards Naruto, who was grinning widely at him.

"There ya go! We'll have you acting like a normal person in no time!" Gaara simply stared at Naruto with a blank expression. Naruto's shoulders slumped down, his brow twitching a bit, "We also need to teach you about jokes and facial expressions."

"Sorry Naruto-kun," Gaara apologized.

"N-no, don't be sorry," Naruto sputtered quickly. "This is just a work in progress! It takes time is all, don't worry. Now come on, you've gotta meet some other friends of mine." Gaara nodded then followed Naruto towards Neji and Kiba's fire.

Yahiko, Konan, Nagato, Jiraiya, and Zabuza all sat around their campfire, staring at a map of the continent. "So we're just outside of the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Water," Yahiko stated. "So to throw the enemy off, we'll head deeper into the country and then hook around and get back into the Land of Rice Fields, back to our main headquarters."

"And then that's when we sent out different teams around the various bases set up in surrounding countries right," Nagato asked.

"Right, we'll get back there so we can formulate a better strategy. We have no idea if Danzo sent out additional search parties to look for us or not."

"Can't we just do that here instead of wasting time," Zabuza questioned.

"We need a full roster of all our men, and we need to decide who to send where to better benefit the mission," Yahiko replied. "It's better to waste time than men after all."

"Won't argue with that," the swordsmen murmured.

"After everyone gets done eating, we're heading out," Yahiko stated. "Nagato and Konan, you guys start telling people and-," Yahiko stopped himself when he saw Zabuza rising up to his feet.

"Hey, as soon as you're all done stuffing your faces we're heading out! So enjoy your meal, because you got ten minutes until we head out! Unless you all want to fight a Konoha ambush squadron!" The swordsmen sat back down and looked at the Akatsuki leaders, "There, that's settled."

"He gets things done quickly doesn't he," Nagato asked, leaning towards Konan.

"I was thinking that maybe we could be a little nicer about that," Yahiko stated, his eye twitching in aggravation. "Or hell, even subtle."

"Whether or not you realize it: we're at war now. If you want nice or subtle go join a book club. We can't spend more than ten minutes sitting here without putting ourselves and everyone here at risk."

"He's got a point," Jiraiya stated. "Besides, I don't think anyone would want to question Zabuza here." The Sannin elbowed the swordsmen as he chuckled.

"Whatever. Since you two seem to be such good pals you can both go keep watch." Zabuza shrugged then rose to his feet again, twirling his sword from the ground onto his back. Jiraiya stood up and followed after him, leaving the Ame Orphans alone.

"So…it's finally happened," Nagato stated. "Years of dreaming and praying…we finally showed ourselves to the world."

"Now we've just got to make sure we win this thing," Yahiko murmured.

"We will," Konan replied. The two men looked over at the smiling kunoichi who was staring off into the campsite. "We have the Will of Fire, and Naruto Uzumaki on our side. There's no way we're gonna lose this war." Nagato and Yahiko smiled, then followed Konan's gaze to the blonde Jinchuriki, their unofficial mascot: Naruto Uzumaki.

**

* * *

Damn this chapter was long. I know the end probably seemed rushed, what with nothing but dialogue, so I apologize for that. Well, that ends the Chunin Exams Arc, FINALLY! Now we get into more interesting conspiracies, drama, and a prelude to war! Also Gaara's sudden and very drastic transformation will be elaborated in greater detail NEXT chapter.  
Thank you everyone who waited patiently for this chapter to come out, but again college is crazy. I also found out I have three D's, which means the next chapter may come out…who knows when. But for now I have to study my keister off. I just wanted to get this out for everyone so you all would know, and not abandon the story.**


	19. Date With Destiny

Sakura scowled angrily, fussing with an earring that wouldn't stay on. She was dressed in a long sleeved, button-up red shirt and tight, past-the-knee shorts. Her already short hair was pulled back and tied into a bun, and her bangs hung by the sides of her face as usual. Her green eyes snapped back at the sound of a light knocking on her door.

"It's open," Sakura called out. A pause and no answer. Sakura's brow furrowed in confusion before she scoffed and turned towards the door. "And I'm wearing clothes!"

"Just making sure," Higure replied as the door opened. He opened his mouth to say something, but paused when he saw Sakura dressed up. Sakura finally got the earring to stay and turned around, holding her arms out.

"How do I look?"

"You look…nice. What're you all dolled up for?" Sakura huffed and turned around to her mirror and started to brush her bangs. Higure blinked skeptically before walking further into the room. "You usually get dressed up for formal events, like your academy graduation party, a special type of dance going on in the village…or a date." Sakura stiffened, causing her uncle to smirk. "Who is he?"

"Sasuke," Sakura quickly replied.

"Or Rock Lee," Higure swiftly corrected. Sakura slammed her hands on her dresser and whirled around to her uncle. The smirking man twiddled his thumbs innocently before finally saying, "Dosu and Zaku told me." Sakura turned around and brushed her hair again.

"I'm so gonna kill those two. Did Dosu also tell you that he owes me big time for doing this?" Higure nodded as he sat down on Sakura's bed, watching her in the mirror as she brushed her hair.

"The thing that confuses me is that you're getting so dressed up for Lee. I didn't know that you apparently liked him so much."

"I don't. It's not like I dressed up in a kimono for him or anything. And it's not like I can just _not_ dress up. I'm not a complete jerk…" Sakura shot a quick glance at her uncle before looking back at her reflection. "You're not going to do anything to ruin my date are you?"

"Like going out tonight and stalking you and Rock Lee all throughout the village to make sure you two are behaving? Hell no. I'm way too old to do anything like that." Sakura glanced over at her uncle's reflection skeptically before she turned around.

"How do I look?" Higure tilted his head as he examined his niece's appearance.

"You look beautiful. Still wondering why you look so nice for Lee. Seems like a waste."

"You could always take me out somewhere once and awhile. Plus it could get your lazy butt out of the house."

"Let's do a rain check on that. I rather like my house."

"I'm going now," Sakura stated, walking towards the door. "I'll be back before dark, promise."

"Don't bother coming back if you do something stupid," Higure called out. Sakura rolled her eyes before giving one last wave to her uncle.

The pink haired kunoichi closed the front door behind her silently. She leaned against the door and sighed, staring at the ground. _'Stupid Dosu, having to make me go on this date. I swear I'm gonna get him back somehow.'_ Sakura walked off the porch and into the streets, heading towards the cemetery to pay her parents a quick visit.

* * *

Kakashi entered Danzo's office, seeing the back of the old man's chair. Konoha's Second White Fang quietly closed the door and stood at attention, waiting for Danzo to acknowledge him. After a few long, silent moments, Danzo turned around, staring directly at Kakashi.

"Your old teammate…"

"Is a confirmed member of Akatsuki, yes lord Danzo," Kakashi swiftly replied. "I harbor no feelings for him. If you wish it, I will kill him."

"In due time my friend. I have no doubt you care not for your old comrade in arms. However, your…significant other…"

"I haven't told Rin about Obito's involvement with Akatsuki if that's what you're asking. She doesn't even know he's alive." Danzo nodded with a soft huff. Kakashi's eyes narrowed slightly, "I know you didn't bring me here to question my loyalty did you lord Danzo? There's another matter you wish to discuss."

"Indeed. I need to send a small team of shinobi into the Land of Earth to keep an eye on Onoki and Iwagakure. You, your students, along with another squad, will move into this country and make sure that we can trust Onoki, and that he won't do something stupid like betray us."

"With due respect, are we sure my Genin can handle this? We're built to be a tracking squad. Infiltration and espionage is something the ANBU should handle."

"Kakashi, if I sent in a squad of ANBU Black Ops, how do you think Onoki will react?" Kakashi nodded, having thought about the end result of such an action. "A squad of Genin will put Onoki at ease. He wouldn't consider them a threat in the heart of his own village."

"What other teams are you considering, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Anko's team is at the top of my list. Your two teams have done splendidly with the smaller missions, such as transporting weapons and supplies to the Kurosuki Family."

"That was small time stuff lord Hokage. I'm not entirely confident that they'll work well together with such a large assignment."

"They work well together, despite their many differences. A squad of observers I sent out during the Chunin Exams said that during the second stage those two teams set aside their immense hatred to take on Gaara, and they won. Say what you will about personal differences, but your team and Anko's work well together. The alternate choice is to not use either of you and send Orochimaru with his students, but I believe that would cause too much alarm on Onoki's part."

"I will agree with your decision lord Danzo," Kakashi affirmed. "But I have to ask what your preparations are for the upcoming war?"

"Whether or not such a situation will arise, I want to cover all my bases first. Regardless whether the Raikage or Mizukage declare war, I want to make sure all my alliances are in place and secure. Guy's team is currently moving through the Land of Fire to insure all of the criminal gangs I use that I am still in charge. I told him to make a few examples just in case."

"What about Orochimaru-san?"

"He is currently working on a few experiments, and is on call to go to the Land of Waves. If a war will break out, his curse mark will be extremely useful for our soldiers to give us an edge. But if war were to be declared, I'm sending him and his team out to the Land of Waves to hold it. Currently we're turning the island into one big supply outpost, and a fortress that won't be taken easily."

"Very wise my lord," Kakashi agreed.

"Also, a team from Sunagakure will be accompanying you: Baki and the two remaining Sand Siblings. It's to keep Sasori happy, and keeping him happy after losing his Jinchuriki is one of my top priorities."

"That won't be a problem my lord. We'll get this mission done. But if Onoki is planning to betray his alliance, or tries to kill us, what are your orders?"

"Terminate him," Danzo replied quickly. "We'll replace the fool with a more loyal Tsuchikage who can convince the people that betraying this alliance will affect their village negatively. And if need be, we'll move in and wrestle control of the whole damn country." Kakashi bowed his head in understanding. "I'm placing my trust in your hands Kakashi. Don't fail me."

"Of course my lord." Though Kakashi didn't entirely believe Danzo trusted him, he did know that the Hokage was counting on him. Danzo trusted very few people, and Kakashi wasn't surprised if he didn't fall under that category. "I'll make sure my students are aware of this." Kakashi turned and exited the room. As the door closed, Danzo turned around, staring out into his village once again.

"Onoki would be a fool to try and double cross me…but I wouldn't expect anything less from the old bastard." Killing the Tsuchikage would be of little consequence in Danzo's mind. It wouldn't be hard to replace Onoki and keep his alliance with Iwagakure.

* * *

Kankuro threw the door open on the Kazekage's office and stormed in with a worried Temari behind him. The puppeteer slammed his hands on Sasori's desk, alarming Kabuto. Sasori simply shifted his eyes up to the young, brash Genin with a bored expression.

"What the hell are you thinking by sending us to Iwagakure," Kankuro snapped. "We should be out there searching for Gaara! He's our brother damn it!" Sasori blinked once before looking back down at a document in his hand. "Are you even listening to me?" Suddenly, Kankuro was shoved back by Kabuto who moved himself between the desk and the puppeteer.

"Watch your tone around your Kazekage," Kabuto advised.

"It's quite alright Kabuto," Sasori stated. All eyes moved to the Kazekage who rose up from his seat. "Kankuro just wants to know why he can't go out to find his brother. Let me put it in simple terms for you: you're too weak." Kankuro blinked with surprise. Sasori made his way around his desk as he continued, "You're a simple Genin who couldn't make it to the third stage of the Chunin Exams. Beaten by a simple genjutsu casted by a little girl. The people we saw in Akatsuki's ranks were high class shinobi, anything from A to S-class ninjas. You think I'd trust you to get our village's only Jinchuriki back?"

"Then who are you sending," Temari asked with a softer tone than Kankuro's. Unlike her brother, she was far more worried for her life than her youngest brother.

"Currently I have all of our forces setting up outposts and traps all around the country and the village to prepare. I doubt that the enemy will get this far into the mainland, but still, one can't be too cautious of the Akatsuki. For all we know they could have a base somewhere in the Land of Wind. That's why I have our ANBU division scouting every inch of this country to insure that Akatsuki doesn't have a base of operations outside our front door."

"So then who the hell are you sending to get Gaara," Kankuro demanded.

"A specialist." Just then, the door opened. Sasori smiled at the newcomer, but the Sand Siblings practically jumped out of their skin. The man wore a long, black trench coat that covered his entire body from the neck down, and a mask that covered every inch of his head except his eyes. The mere appearance of the man was more than enough to shut the noisy Kankuro up. Kabuto, despite having met the man a number of times already, couldn't help but shift uneasily. "This is the man I put in charge of finding Gaara. I'm sure you've heard about the legendary bounty hunter Kakuzu the Immortal."

"K-K-K-Kakuzu," Temari repeated.

"No way…" The bounty hunter looked at Kankuro, then up at Sasori.

"You know what I want," Kakuzu said. Sasori nodded then looked to Kabuto. The medic walked forward with a suitcase and placed it before Kakuzu. The masked man knelt down and opened the case up, looking at the money inside. "This is my normal payment. And since I'm tracking _your_ Jinchuriki you know I demand more."

"Half now, half when Gaara is back in front of me," Sasori hissed with a venomous tone. Kakuzu huffed, standing up as he flung the suitcase over his shoulder, still in hand. "Remember: this one I want alive."

"You drive a hard bargain Sasori-sama," Kakuzu stated with a laugh. "I'll get it done."

"Remember: Akatsuki has two of the Legendary Sannin, two Uchiha survivors and-,"

"A whole shit-ton of other bad things, I know. You should know you don't have to worry about anything. I can handle anything they throw at me." Sasori chuckled then nodded once. Kakuzu turned and headed towards the door. Before exiting Kakuzu looked back over his shoulder, "I'll come back when the job is finished."

Sasori smirked as Kakuzu left and then looked down at the Sand Siblings. Both of the young shinobi were practically quaking in their shoes. It was an affect that Kakuzu seemed to have on most people. Sasori however had grown immune to that certain 'charm.' As long as Kakuzu got the job done, which he did, and as long as Sasori paid the man, which he always did, the two had a well working partnership.

"Do you still have doubts young Kankuro?"

"N-no lord Sasori…"

The Kazekage sneered and then turned to sit back into his seat. "Good. Now, go and prepare for your little mission with the Konoha forces. Knowing Onoki as well as I do, I get the feeling this won't be an easy mission."

* * *

Gaara looked around as he and Naruto walked through the tunnel of Akatsuki's main headquarters. The redheaded Jinchuriki was rather surprised that there was such a large set of tunnels underground, all made by these ninjas.

"Awe man, this is sweet!"

Gaara lowered his head, looking at Naruto who was admiring his new jacket. The uniform was simple: a simple black, zip-up jacket with a hood and red clouds on it. The higher ups decided that it would be easier to determine rank amongst themselves by a variation in uniform. To be honest, it was a good, if not utterly simple, way to differentiate. Gaara himself wore the same jacket as Naruto. The only difference was Gaara had a strap over his that held his sand gourd on his back.

The young Jinchuriki was slowly adapting to his new lifestyle. Leaving his home village was no large ordeal, seeing as how everyone feared, hated, or saw him as nothing more than a weapon. Even his own family wouldn't be missed. Kankuro hated him, Temari feared him, and in the eyes of his father and the Kazekage, Gaara was little more than a weapon.

After Naruto's speech during Akatsuki's attack during the Chunin Exams, something inside Gaara changed. The Jinchuriki of the desert couldn't explain it, but a bond was formed almost immediately. They both went through the same pain, they were both weapons created by this world of war to increase a village's power. But Naruto saw something else in Gaara, and brought a better side of him out.

Still, everything was going to take some getting use to on Gaara's end. His only real friend so far was Naruto. He met some of the boy's other friends, and although they acted nice to Gaara, the Jinchuriki could sense that they were extraordinarily uneasy. Apparently there were a few new members of Akatsuki that Naruto hadn't met, and he was all too eager to do so.

"Hey, I who're those two," Naruto asked. Gaara looked ahead, seeing a young man with long black hair, and a short young boy with light purple hair walking side by side. "The oldest one is kinda cute…" Gaara looked to his friend with bewilderment.

"Naruto…I had no idea you were interested in…uh…"

"In what? You know I'm always eager to meet new friends! Especially if they're as good looking as that one." Gaara blinked with surprise, as Naruto strode forward confidently. "Hey, you two!"

Haku and Ranmaru stopped and looked over at the approaching blonde. Haku smiled politely, "Hello there, can we help you?"

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki. Are you two new to the Akatsuki?"

"We are. I'm Haku and this is my friend Ranmaru." The shy boy waved at the two Jinchuriki. "We're just on our way to lady Tsunade's for his checkup." Naruto's eyes widened a bit as he looked at the young boy.

"His," Naruto repeated. Gaara looked over curiously at his blonde companion again. Did he really not know that these two were boys?

"Yeah, whenever we first brought him in he was a cripple, but Lady Tsunade helped him walk again. But he does need some regular checkups to make sure the procedure went over well."

"A…are you a guy too," Naruto asked, weakly pointing his finger at Haku.

The now ticked off ice user sighed, "Yes. Yes I am." Naruto's jaw fell open, nearly hitting the floor. Gaara couldn't help but crack a smile at his friend's embarrassment.

"I-I'm so sorry! I had no idea!"

"It's alright," Haku replied. "I've been meaning to get a haircut to make myself look more like a boy anyway…"

"I knew," Gaara spoke. Naruto whirled to his fellow Jinchuriki with a baffled expression.

Haku smiled as he looked over at Gaara, "Well thank you for noticing erm…what was your name again?"

"I'm Gaara, the Jinchuriki of Sunagakure."

"Oh, so you're the famous new recruit we got." Haku extended his hand out to the redhead. "It's a pleasure to meet you." Gaara stared down at the ice user's hand with a look of confusion on his face. Haku simply smiled and took Gaara's hand into his and shook.

"Haku-kun, we don't want to keep Miss Shizune waiting," Ranmaru softly spoke.

"Right, sorry." Haku looked to the two Jinchuriki and bowed his head. "I hope to see you both again sometime very soon." Haku took Ranmaru's tiny hand and the two ran down the tunnels.

"Well, looks like you're making more friends already," Naruto boasted proudly, patting Gaara on the back. The blonde narrowed his eyes and lowly hummed lowly before mumbling, "Though you could've told me that guy wasn't a girl."

"I'm sorry," Gaara murmured, looking at the floor. "I thought you knew."

"Ah, it's okay. That Haku seems like a cool guy." Gaara nodded in agreement. "Come on, I've gotta show you the rest of the place!" Naruto rushed forward with Gaara following behind.

* * *

Sakura was about ready to hang herself. Not only did Lee not shut up for more than a minute about how he was on a date with Sakura, but he was so nervous he was practically SCREAMING it to the entire village. Snickering and whispers were going around as the two walked down the street. It was all Sakura could do to keep herself from going on a killing spree around town.

"Sakura-chan," Lee spoke with a questioning, and still loud, tone. The pink haired kunoichi cracked an eye open, glaring angrily at the bug-eyed boy. "Where do you wish to go to eat out at?"

"I really don't care Lee. And please don't call me Sakura-chan anymore." Lee tilted his head.

"But why not Sakura-chan?"

A goofy, grinning, and all too familiar face popped into Sakura's head. Her heart sank a bit before she pushed the memory back out of her mind. "Just please don't alright?" Lee nodded, lowering his head to the ground.

The boy turned back to her, smiling widely, "Have I told you how beautiful you look Sakura?"

The kunoichi simply sighed and stuck her pinkie in her ear, "Only for the hundredth time Lee." Suddenly, the boy flashed in front of Sakura, cutting off her path. The pink haired kunoichi gasped lightly with surprise as Lee sunk down to one knee.

"Sakura-chan, I love you more than words can tell! And I swear this date will not stop until you say you love me!" More whispers and soft snickers were heard, causing Sakura to shake lightly with agitation. "Sakura-chan, you're shaking! Are you cold my love? I will warm you up WITH THE POWER OF—OW JEEZ!" Sakura's eyes popped open with surprise. Before she knew what was happening, Sakura was lifted off the ground and screaming with fright.

Sakura clung to the kidnapper (or rescuer) tightly. She opened her eyes, seeing Dosu's masked face and shaggy hair. Her teammate looked down at her with his eyes, "Hi there."

Back in the streets, Lee groaned as he started pushing himself off the ground. "SNEAK ATTACK!" Zaku flipped over Lee, using his slicing sound wave to shove the boy into the ground forcefully. The black haired boy laughed as he ran down the street after his two teammates.

Dosu sprung up on a rooftop and started rushing as far away from Lee as possible. "Okay, I can not tell you how freaking happy I am to have you two idiots as teammates right now!"

"Zaku actually wanted to wait another hour to see if you'd bash Lee's brains in," Dosu stated with a smug tone. "I would say you owe me one…but I guess we'll call it even." Sakura smiled at her partner and nodded.

"HEY!" Dosu and Sakura looked back, just as Zaku joined up with them. "We're gonna share the wench right?"

"Call me a wench again," Sakura seethed, "I **DARE** you." Zaku flinched a bit at Sakura's very deadly tone, but laughed it off regardless.

"You really think calling her names is the smartest idea after we barely saved her from a date with Lee," Dosu questioned.

"A date she wouldn't be on if it wasn't for you!" Dosu blinked in response, remaining silent for a few moments.

"Point taken. Regardless, we still have a mission to complete!" Sakura tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"What mission?"

"To keep you out of Lee's sight until he becomes _so_ depressed he kills himself," Zaku joked. The kunoichi rolled her eyes at the poor attempt of a joke.

"So where are we going to hide from the persistent guy," Sakura asked, looking between the two boys.

"A faraway, magical world where there are no knuckle-heads with bowl-cuts who will constantly pester and harass you," Dosu replied with a very narrative tone. Sakura rolled her eyes as she sprung out of her teammate's arms. To the shock of the two boys, Sakura actually moved ahead of them. She knew exactly where they were going.

A few moments later, the three of them ended up nearly two miles outside of the village, inside a secret hangout that only the three Genin knew of. It was an underground cavern, or glorified hole in the ground, covered by large boulders with only a small opening that one would have to crawl through. The hangout was discovered shortly after the three Genin were put into a team, and they were assigned to track down the Daimyo's wife's cat. The sticking ball of fur and claws had cornered itself there and made it a pain in the ass to get out. Dosu still had the scars from that mission.

"So what happens if Sakura's uncle gets pissed that we're hiding her from the world for the night," Zaku asked.

"I already told him we'd be saving Sakura from Rock Lee," was Dosu's response. "He said as long as her stomach doesn't swell up in a couple of months he didn't care." Zaku cringed a bit and shook his head.

"Gross," the black haired boy murmured.

"Why is Sakura still outside anyway? She has to be home tomorrow and I'm not returning her to that crazy old man if she's sick. Now go bring her inside before she catches a cold."

"Fine mom." Zaku stood up and moved towards the exit.

Outside their little hideout was a small pond with a few cherry blossom cherry trees surrounding the body of water. Sakura sat under one of the trees, staring out at the moon as a chilly wind blew. Despite cool breeze, Sakura surprisingly wasn't cold.

Zaku groaned as he barely squeezed through the entrance of their hangout. A few years and he was still a growing boy, "We're gonna have to make that damn thing bigger." Zaku stood up, dusted himself off then walked up to Sakura. "Mother Dosu wants you inside before you get the sniffles."

"I'll come inside in a minute," Sakura softly murmured. Zaku raised a questioning eyebrow, quizzically studying his teammate for a moment. He sighed before plopping down next to her, staring out at the moon with her.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Sakura replied.

"Cool, now come inside." Sakura sighed, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs. Zaku groaned lightly, looking away from Sakura. He wasn't very good with emotional talks of any sort. "Look, I know something's up with you. The past few days you've been…well, angrier than usual."

"It's nothing Zaku…" The black haired boy looked at his teammate, trying to register the emotion in Sakura's eyes.

"Is it…that Naruto guy?" Sakura's eyes drifted downward, sadness washing over her. Zaku looked forward, unsure of what to say to her.

"I just wish…" Zaku turned his head around, looking back at Sakura. The young kunoichi was staring forward at the moon once again. "I wish it could've worked out ya know. I wish I could've shown him this." Zaku looked forward, noticing the moonlight bouncing off the water's surface and a few light pink pedals floating over it.

"Yeah…this would be a nice place to have a date I suppose." Zaku looked over at Sakura and placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry things couldn't work out Sakura."

Sakura simply smiled and brushed some of her pink hair over her ear, "It's okay." She looked over at Zaku and smiled wider, "I'll get over it." Zaku patted Sakura lightly on her back then stood up, helping Sakura to her feet. The two walked towards their hangout, preparing for the scolding Dosu would likely give them.

* * *

Konan pushed the door open to Yahiko's room and marched in. The orange haired man turned around with a curious look. Konan was grinning as she held up a scroll. "Remember that one rogue shinobi you were looking for?"

"You'll have to be more specific than that."

"Deidara." Yahiko's eyes lit up with shock. "He's heading towards the Land of Frost. Our intelligence believes he's on his way to rendezvous with forces from the Land of Water."

"Which means if they're hiring a mercenary like Deidara, then they are indeed preparing for war," Yahiko stated. "Deidara's specialty is sabotage and guerilla styled tactics. The Land of Water may be trying to use him to try and cripple Danzo's advance if nothing else."

"Let me guess: we need to stop Deidara and convince him to join our side," Konan asked smugly.

"Yes, that. Think you're up for it?"

"I am, but I'll need some back up." Yahiko walked over to his desk and started going through files.

"I'll select a team to go with you. I was thinking maybe Itachi would be the best for-,"

"I have two in mind already," Konan said, cutting Yahiko off. The Akatsuki leader looked up with a questioning brow raised. "And I have reasons for each candidate, so let me explain myself before you tell me no." Yahiko sighed, straightening up and crossing his arms. Konan was slightly annoyed by the fact he already had a disapproving look on his face. "Deidara specializes in long range, destructive and explosive ninjutsu. His fighting style is very unpredictable, which makes him an even more formidable foe."

'_I already don't like where this is going…'_

"So what I'll need to combat him is long range, a formidable defense, and the same unpredictable fighting style." Yahiko's eyes hardened, but Konan continued. "I suggest that Haku, Gaara, and Naruto come with me."

"No, no, and no!" Konan groaned, her head dropping down. "What the hell makes you think that I'd send three children in to take down a highly dangerous S-class criminal? If anything I should send Nagato with you, but I know you'd just throw that back in my face."

"Think about it." Yahiko's jaw tensed under Konan's sharpened tone. "Gaara's ultimate defense can withstand anything, including any type of explosive."

"He's also the newest member of Akatsuki, and we have no idea if we can trust him, or if those murderous impulses can be contained!"

"Which is why I'll stick him on the sidelines, somewhere hidden, but somewhere he can also see us so he can shield us as needed. Also Naruto has been keeping the kid's blood thirsty drives in check."

"Alright, what about Haku? You think he'll be able to hold his own against an S-class ninja like Deidara?"

"He's spent his entire life being raised by a ruthless, blood thirsty man, his speed nearly rivals Itachi's, and his ice kekkei genkai is like Gaara's ultimate defense: unbreakable." Yahiko narrowed his eyes. Konan inwardly smirked, knowing she had him beaten. Yahiko had to be racking his brain for any other excuse to use to prevent this.

"What about Naruto? He's brash, stupid, hard-headed, and he'll try to rush Deidara. Naruto is a close range fighter, there's no way he can stand against Deidara."

"In case you forgot: Naruto has his mother's ability, plus his shadow clone jutsu could serve as a distraction against Deidara. Also with his unpredictable nature, I wouldn't be surprised if he was the one who took out Deidara himself." Yahiko sighed, rubbing his forehead in stress. Konan now outwardly smirked. She officially had him.

"What happens if you run into any shinobi from the Land of Water?" Konan rolled her eyes at Yahiko's last, desperate attempt to dissuade her squad choice.

"Haku and Zabuza spent how many years running from Kiri hunter-ninjas? You know that Kiri has the best tracking and hunting squad in the entire world. For those two to avoid capture all those years is impressive, and Haku would undoubtedly have picked up some tricks from Zabuza in that time period."

"Well…" Yahiko's mouth remained open, trying to think of a quick argument. Konan's brow raised in curiosity as she leaned forward, mockingly opening her mouth to mimic Yahiko. "I uh…damn it…" Yahiko fell back into his chair in defeat. Konan gave a pitied smile before she knelt down. Placing her chin on her arm, she looked over at Yahiko who looked back up at her. "Can I please send someone else with you?"

"Depends…"

"Jiraiya sensei?"

"Dream on," Konan replied. Yahiko smiled, knowing he wasn't going to win that argument by a long shot. Konan smiled back and tilted her head to the side. "What about Shizune? Or maybe even Zabuza if I'm feeling nice to you."

"I don't think I want to subjugate you to having to deal with Zabuza. The only problem is if Deidara or someone else finds Gaara while he's on the sidelines defending you guys. If his ultimate defense is busy defending you all then he's wide open."

"I know he is, but I don't like the idea of separating Naruto and Gaara. Like you I'm worried about Gaara's former…impulses. And I know that asking for _both_ Jinchuriki after revealing Naruto and taking Gaara is also a huge risk, but I think it's necessary. Besides, you've been dealing with Naruto for over a month. This'll give you a break from him."

"That would be nice," Yahiko agreed, nodding as his chair rocked. "Just take at least one adult with you. For me…?" Konan took a small breath, putting on a warm smile before she stood up.

"I rather like my team the way it is. I don't want to add someone on the team who won't be doing anything. The team is fine and I'm a big girl Yahiko. I can hold my own, and watch out for the kids. Besides, Haku is wise beyond his years as it is. Like Neji."

"Only more girly looking." Konan sighed, standing up with one hand on Yahiko's desk.

"Unless you can find a good reason why I need another person on my squad, or find someone who will benefit the team, it's to remain as it is." Konan turned and exited Yahiko's room, leaving the orange haired man alone.

"There's just no convincing that woman." Of course, that didn't mean Yahiko wouldn't try.

Konan sighed as the door shut behind her. She looked up, noticing Jiraiya standing across from her with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. "Bold move," the Sannin stated.

"He couldn't say no Jiraiya sensei."

"Because you wouldn't hear no from him right?"

"He knows me well enough to know that I'll get what I want one way or the other." Jiraiya chuckled as a wide grin formed along his face. "And not like that Pervy Sage."

Throwing his head back, Jiraiya boomed with laughter. Konan cracked a smirk before she started to walk away. Jiraiya followed along beside her, wanting to catch up with his former student.

"So you're taking Naruto with you?" Konan nodded, looking up at the Sannin to read his reaction. She knew that Naruto was like Jiraiya's grandson, and was his legitimate godfather. It wasn't surprising for him to be concerned over his wellbeing on a mission like this. "Good. I was wondering, Konan, if I might ask a favor of you."

"Anything Jiraiya sensei."

"I was hoping you could help Naruto with some special training."

"What type of special training," Konan tilted her head to the side as she asked.

"Well I was thinking that Naruto might benefit greatly from nature manipulation training. Now that Danzo knows Naruto is alive, he'll make every effort to try and capture Naruto, including sending any and all of his most skilled ninjas after him. Naruto needs to learn everything he can to fight back against whatever gets thrown his way."

"I understand Jiraiya sensei. I'll be sure to do your job for you." Jiraiya laughed at the teasing smirk on Konan's face.

"Well aren't we the sassy one," Jiraiya smugly questioned as he put his arm around Konan.

"I learned from the best," Konan replied with a smile.

* * *

Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku were heading towards the training field, having got a message from Anko to meet her ASAP to get their asses kicked. Anko was one of the few others who knew about the team's hideout, so it wasn't hard to sent a snake summon to find them. Their teacher was sitting on top of a stump, absently staring off into the distance. The three Genin stopped and waited for their teacher to respond. A slight wind blew around the squad.

"We've been recruited for a mission," Anko finally spoke without even glancing at her students.

"What mission," Zaku asked. "What's the rating for it?"

"Anywhere from C…to S." The eyes of the Genin widened, and their jaws dropped. "Lord Danzo is sending us, Kakashi's team, and a group from Sunagakure to the Land of Earth to make sure their Tsuchikage isn't plotting anything."

"S-so he's sending Genin," Dosu questioned. "What're Genin supposed to do against a Kage?"

"Hey, I didn't ask for the mission," Anko snapped, scowling fiercely at her students. "We take what we get assigned and we complete our mission no matter what!" The Jonin rose to her feet and turned to the side, putting her hands in her pockets. "We're leaving whenever we get a response from Iwa. Be ready whenever that message comes got it?"

"Yes ma'am," Anko's team murmured. The purple haired kunoichi huffed then vanished in a blur. A prolonged silence hung in the air as another gentle breeze blew throughout the training field.

Zaku was the first to break the silence, "This is such bullshit."

"Nothing we can do about it," Dosu replied, equally as angry. "I'll see you guys later." Dosu started to walk off, causing Sakura and Zaku to look at him quizzically.

"Where the hell are you going," Zaku asked loudly.

"To get ready for that bullshit mission," Dosu shouted back. Zaku growled and folded his arms tightly over his chest. Sakura only remained silent as her eyes fell to the ground.

"This isn't going to end well…" Zaku looked over at Sakura with a puzzling look. The kunoichi looked up at her partner with a worried look in her eyes. "I've gotta go Zaku." Before another word was uttered, Sakura ran towards the village. Zaku gapped in confusion before rolling his eyes and heading back home.

The only thing on Sakura's mind currently was how to break the news to her uncle. A mission ranking anywhere from C to S? There was no way he wasn't going to freak out, even if there was a one percent chance it would be an S-rank mission. She had to think of something to tell him.

* * *

The sun was beginning to set as Konan and her new team stood at the entrance of the Akatsuki hideout. None of them wore their Akatsuki uniforms, for obvious reasons. Konan wore her usual sleeveless blue top, black pants and knee-high boots. Naruto wore a turtle-neck, dark blue top with orange slacks. Gaara wore a sleeveless white top with a long sleeved brown shirt under it with matching brown pants, and of course his sand gourd on his back. Haku wore a light blue kimono with teal trim, and light orange pants with his hunter-nin mask strapped to the side of his head. Konan stopped and turned to the three kids before her.

"Alright guys, we're heading out now. We're going to cover as much ground as we can under nightfall, rest up during the first half of the day and then continue onward for the second half of that day. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am," Naruto exclaimed.

"Right," Haku agreed with a nod. Gaara only nodded as well.

"Then let's move out." Konan turned and sprung off into the forest. Looking back to confirm that the boys were following her, Konan sighed with relief. Now there was no way Yahiko could pull some random shinobi to come with them at the last second. "Naruto." The blonde's head perked up at the mention of his name. "Come up here real quick. I want to speak with you for a moment." Naruto nodded then leapt further forward until he was next to Konan.

"What's up Konan-chan?"

"I just wanted to see how Gaara was doing," Konan whispered. Naruto's eyes widened with confusion. "He hasn't had the desire to kill anyone lately has he?"

"No, he's pretty normal actually. Well…socially he still needs some work, but he hasn't had the urge to kill anyone for awhile now."

"Good, just making sure that I don't have to keep an eye on him."

Naruto huffed, grinning widely, "Don't worry about that. I'll keep an eye on Gaara. You just worry about taking down this Deidara guy." Konan smiled and nodded to Naruto. "So is that all you wanted?"

"Actually, Jiraiya sensei asked me to teach you something." Naruto's grin vanished as he stared at Konan for a moment. "Naruto, you'd be interested in nature manipulation wouldn't you?"

"Huh, what's that?"

Konan sighed, but smiled nonetheless, "Nature manipulation is basically elemental jutsus, like fire, water, wind, earth, and-,"

"HELL YEAH I'D BE INTERESTED!" Konan flinched slightly, but laughed softly. "When do we start training?"

"First, let's get as far away from the base as we can, then we'll discuss your training, got it?"

"Yes ma'am!" Suddenly, Naruto sprung forward even further. Konan shook her head before looking back at Haku and Gaara.

"Pick up the pace a bit boys, otherwise Naruto will leave us behind."

"Right," Haku and Gaara said before moving faster.

* * *

Danzo stared out into the night that loomed over his village, waiting patiently for Orochimaru to show up. A few of his spies had come back from a scouting mission, finally having found Takigakure. For months now that village had been a thorn in his side, constantly doing anything and everything they could to annoy Danzo. The only problem was that the village was hidden rather well. Now, after years of searching, Danzo finally found them.

The door opened, and Danzo could feel Orochimaru's presence. "You summoned me lord Hokage?"

"I did." The Hokage turned to Orochimaru and walked around his desk. "My spies have located Takigakure." Orochimaru's eyes flared a bit with excitement. "I'm sending you and your students to infiltrate and destroy that village."

"What about Hanzo," Orochimaru questioned. "Takigakure has been targeting Amegakure more specifically due to their Jinchuriki being stolen. He'll obviously want to know about this interesting discovery."

"True. He will. Which is why I finished my duties early, and didn't hear of this until tomorrow morning, which is when I'll send a letter to Danzo to let him know. At most, you'll have two days to get there first and destroy the village."

"Well, I thank you for the head start, but I'm curious as to why you're giving it to me lord Danzo."

"You want more test subjects don't you," Danzo questioned. Orochimaru sneered evilly and started chuckling.

"Oh you're a devious one alright. Very well, I'll assemble my team as quickly as possible and move out." Danzo nodded and moved past Orochimaru to exit his office. The Sannin sneered, watching Danzo as he closed the door. _'Going behind even your most trusted ally's back. My, my, the old man must be getting restless.'_ Orochimaru chuckled again, his shoulders shaking as he suppressed his deviousness. "It won't be long…before Konoha needs a _new_ Hokage." Orochimaru turned and left the office, turning off the lights behind him.

* * *

Sakura quietly opened the door, peaking in to see if her uncle was still awake. Unfortunately, she could hear him in the kitchen. Sakura quietly entered and shut the door as quietly as she could. Luckily, it didn't seem like her uncle heard. Sakura took her shoes off and quickly moved towards the stairs. She made it to her room, locked the door and quickly started to change into her nighttime clothes, letting her nice kimono lie on the floor. As soon as she was dressed, Sakura sprung into bed, pulled her covers over her body and closed her eyes. If she went to sleep now, woke up in the morning early enough and left to hang out with Dosu or Zaku, and keep up that schedule, she could avoid her uncle until the mission started.

"Sakura," Higure's voice questioned from the other side of the door. Sakura shut her eyes tightly and mentally cursed herself.

"I'm here," Sakura replied. "I'm going to bed early uncle."

"Um…alright. Is everything okay? I thought you were hanging out with Zaku and Dosu until morning?"

"I uh…I'm not feeling too well." Truth was Sakura was starting to feel a bit under the weather. She was still trying to cope with the fact that 'Ryu' was a rogue ninja, and now she was having to lie to her uncle. "Zaku and Dosu walked me home though."

"Too much youth on your date huh?" Sakura could hear the smile on her uncle's tone. It pained her to be keeping this secret from him, but it was best for the both of them. "Well, is there anything I can get you? Some tea or something?"

"I guess I could drink some tea," Sakura replied softly.

"Alright, I'll be back in a minute." The kunoichi could hear her uncle's soft footsteps moving away from the door.

Sakura pulled her legs up towards her body, hugging herself tightly. She hated lying to her uncle. She never had to lie to him before. But this was for the best. If she told him now he might do something crazy like threaten the Hokage. Lord knows that didn't go over so well last time.

A gentle knock drew Sakura's attention to the door. Higure let himself in, holding a mug of hot tea. Sakura gingerly took the mug from her uncle and smiled up at him, "Thank you."

"Hey, no problem." Higure sat at the foot of Sakura's bed. The kunoichi drank slowly, enjoying the warm liquid running to her stomach. "So, how was your date?" Sakura rolled her eyes, fighting the smile on her face.

"Horrible until Dosu and Zaku kidnapped me. I've never been so happy to see those two idiots." Higure huffed with a smile while Sakura took another drink.

"Mr. Yamanaka repaired his flower shop today."

"Oh yeah?"

"I was thinking of paying your parents a visit tomorrow morning. I was going to ask if you wanted to go, but if you're sick you should rest."

"I'll go." Higure raised a questioning eyebrow. "It's not a big deal. I can sleep when I get home." The retired shinobi gently placed his hand on Sakura's forehead. After a moment, Higure pulled his hand away.

"I guess you could probably go if you can drag yourself out of bed."

"Consider it done." Sakura took another drink, almost finished with her tea.

"Midori came by after you left on your date," Higure stated.

"Little Midori," Sakura asked as she found herself grinning.

Higure nodded, "She wanted you to help her study for an upcoming academy test. That's not a problem is it?"

"No way. You know I love Midori. I'll always make time for her. Did she tell you what it was about? Ninjutsu, genjutsu, or anything?"

"She didn't say, but you got top grades in your graduating class. I doubt she'll have anything you don't already know." Sakura grinned as if to agree before taking the last drink of her tea. "Finished?"

"Yep," Sakura placed the mug in her uncle's hands. "Thank you Uncle Higure."

"No problem kiddo. Get some sleep alright?" Sakura nodded as her uncle shut the lights off and closed the door. Sakura lied her head on her pillow and sighed. She knew she couldn't keep lying to her uncle.

'_Just worry about getting some sleep first Sakura,'_ the kunoichi told herself. _'Worry about it in the morning…'_ Sakura closed her eyes and soon drifted off into darkness.

**

* * *

Well, hopefully you guys are excited about an update after nearly a month. That doesn't mean I shouldn't apologize for not updating sooner. Finals were a bitch and so very time consuming. But, now it's Christmas break, and hopefully I can get another couple of chapters out before I have to go back to school. I hope you guys enjoyed this filler/building-up-to chapter. These can be a lot of fun to write sometimes. I hope I haven't lost any of my faithful reviewers =)  
And for anyone who is wondering about Midori, she was a character in Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2. She doesn't have a whole lot of story, but in a nutshell she's a character who lives close to/is Sakura's neighbor, and is a HUGE fan of Naruto's. In the game she's a Genin, so as of now she's an academy student. The reason as to why I decided to add her was to give Sakura's character more depth I suppose. I mean Naruto has friends out the wazoo. Sakura might as well have another lol.  
Again: hope you enjoyed the chapter =)**


	20. Moving Forward

Konan, Naruto, Haku, and Gaara had been on the move for nearly six hours now. Almost everyone was exhausted, with the exception of course of Naruto Uzumaki. That boy had more stamina than an entire squad of Jonin put together. Despite the fact the energetic blonde could keep going, Konan sprung towards the ground with the three boys following her. The blue haired woman turned around, facing the boys just as they landed.

"We're resting," Konan stated.

"Already," Naruto whined. Haku snapped his head at the blonde with an outraged look on his face.

"What do you mean already," Haku breathlessly questioned. "We've been running nonstop and I'm about ready to collapse right now."

"Naruto, since you seem to have so much energy left, you can stay awake and keep watch."

"W-wait I didn't mean to-,"

"I'll keep watch ma'am." All heads turned to Gaara. The boy removed the gourd from his back and fell on his rear. "I don't sleep anyway due to the Shukaku within me. I can't sleep. I'll keep watch instead."

"Alright, Gaara will keep watch while the rest of us catch some sleep." Naruto grumbled in disapproval of stopping, but started unloading his sleeping gear regardless. Konan dropped her pack to the ground then turned to Gaara whose back was facing her. _'Has he already started keeping watch?'_ Konan approached the redhead and knelt down to him. She could feel Gaara tense up when he realized how close she was. "Thank you for keeping guard Gaara."

"It's no problem," the Jinchuriki replied with a low tone. Konan's mouth twitched into a brief smirk before she walked back towards her pack.

Haku already had his sleeping bag unrolled and set out. Naruto was still trying to get his straightened out on the ground. Konan shook her head as she moved to help the boy. Grabbing one end, Konan pulled on the sleeping bag along with Naruto to straighten it out.

"Thanks Konan-chan."

"No problem kiddo. Now get some sleep for tomorrow alright?" Naruto saluted the blue haired woman before slipping into his sleeping bag.

Konan gave a tired smile to the boy before grabbing her own bag. The woman effortlessly rolled it out smoothly across the ground. Giving out a yawn, Konan got ready to settle herself in.

"Miss Konan," a quiet voice spoke. Konan mentally groaned as she looked up at Gaara. To her shock, the Jinchuriki was now facing her and looking rather bashful. "May I ask you something?"

"Of course Gaara. What's on your mind?"

"It's about Naruto." Konan blinked in confusion before looking back over her shoulder. To her shock, the blonde Jinchuriki was already snoring. Konan couldn't help but curse herself for not seeing that coming. "Whenever he looks at you, the way he addresses you…he obviously holds you in high regard. I can tell it's not just because you're a superior, but he sees you as a friend."

Konan stared at Gaara. Her mind was too tired to see where he was going with this. "What's your point Gaara?" The redhead shifted nervously, moving his eyes to the ground.

"I…I don't understand how your friendship works with him. Although in my village very few people came close to me, I saw how underlings addressed their superiors. There was no familiarity, no informal tones. They feared their superiors, and respected them. How is it that you're Naruto's superior and yet still his friend?"

Konan gave a weary smile before crossing her legs. "Well…it's a long story. You obviously know that Jinchuriki are hated by everyone, including their own neighbors and so-called comrades right? Well, that hatred even stretched into Akatsuki's ranks early on. Many people hated Naruto, and blamed him for the sins that the Kyuubi inside him committed. Many of the other leaders of Akatsuki, like Jiraiya sensei or Yahiko, were busy formulating war strategies. Nagato was busy helping Yahiko and sensei in anyway he could, and Lady Tsunade was busy with her own affairs.

"Now that's not to say I didn't help out either, but I liked to keep a more watchful eye on the ranks. It was a few weeks after we brought Naruto into our group, Jiraiya was the one who was supposed to be in charge of him, to keep an eye on him. I'm not sure why, but one day Jiraiya sensei left Naruto alone for about an hour and asked me if I could keep an eye on him. I headed towards Naruto's room, and found a group of our own men outside of his room, threatening and beating him into the ground."

Konan watched as Gaara's eyes flared with rage. He truly did think of Naruto as his friend if that was enough to get him riled up.

"I stepped in and defended Naruto. I stopped the attackers, and made them run away in fear. I took Naruto into his room where I patched him up. He thanked me for saving him. We spent the half the day just talking. Mostly about his hopes and dreams."

"Hopes and…dreams…?" Konan looked to the slumbering Naruto and smiled warmly. "What were they? Naruto's hopes and dreams?"

Konan turned to Gaara, her smile widening just a bit as she remembered, word for word, what Naruto told her that day: "To become Hokage, and to build a world of peace." Gaara stared at Konan for a few moments before looking over at Naruto.

"A world…of peace…"

"It's a goal we all in Akatsuki desire," Konan stated. "Yahiko, Nagato, and myself were Jiraiya's first students. Jiraiya himself was the one who passed down the idea of peace to the three of us. Nagato is the most passionate about building a new world of peace, where nobody should be oppressed under any person's rule. Both Nagato and Jiraiya sensei passed down this belief to Naruto firsthand."

Silence filled the air between the two Akatsuki shinobi. Gaara looked away from Naruto, lowering his eyes to his own feet. "I…would like such a world I think." Konan looked at the redhead curiously. "A world of peace…no war, no strife…a world where everything was fair and nobody was oppressed." Gaara looked back over at his fellow Jinchuriki. "Naruto Uzumaki's dream…I will do anything I can to help that dream become a reality. If such a world exists, a world where no more Jinchuriki like myself are needed, then I will help Naruto find it."

Konan smiled in admiration of Akatsuki's new Jinchuriki. She was surprised by Gaara's determination and drive. Whether Naruto rubbed off on him or if it was a Jinchuriki thing was beyond her.

"We'll all help Naruto achieve that goal Gaara," Konan assured. "That's very admirable of you though to help Naruto in his goal. You truly are a great friend."

"Thank you ma'am." Konan nodded and then slipped into her sleeping bag. Closing her eyes, she finally allowed herself to drift off into a heavy sleep.

* * *

In Konoha, the sun was just beginning to rise above the village. Sakura groaned as the sunlight hit her face. The pink haired kunoichi sat up, stretching her arms high above her head as she let out a massive yawn. Sakura got out of bed and started getting dressed. She put on a red t-shirt with the Haruno circle on the back, and a pair of baggy shorts.

Sakura headed downstairs, looking around the living room for a moment. Her uncle wasn't in the living room and she didn't hear anyone in the kitchen. She turned around and looked down the hall. Higure's bedroom door was open, which meant he was awake. Apparently he just wasn't home.

"Maybe he went on ahead without me…" Sakura quickly headed towards the door and ran towards the cemetery once she was outside.

After running through half the village, Sakura walked through the cemetery gates. She looked around, seeing a small family of three, two parents and a little boy, kneeling down in front of a gravestone. Sakura smiled a bit before heading towards her parents' resting place. As she got closer, Sakura froze when she saw Kakashi standing next to her uncle. The masked Jonin looked over in her direction and whispered something to Higure. He whispered something very brief back to him. Kakashi nodded, patting Higure on the shoulder before walking away with his hands in his pockets.

"Sakura," Kakashi acknowledged with a nod as be passed. The kunoichi nodded back, her face stricken with fear. What did Kakashi tell her uncle? She knew that although they never saw eye-to-eye, Kakashi respected her uncle for what he use to be, and vice versa.

"Sakura," Higure said loudly. The kunoichi flinched a bit before approaching her uncle slowly. Sakura stopped once she was at her uncle's side, both staring at Saiki and Satoru's gravestones. Sakura dared to look at her uncle's expression. As expected, he was beyond angry. The kunoichi snapped her eyes back down to the ground, praying for her parents to help with divine intervention. "When were you going to tell me?" Sakura shifted to the side nervously, grabbing her right arm to help calm herself.

"I don't know…"

"Were you ever going to tell me," Higure asked, his tone cold as ice.

"I…" Sakura sighed in defeat, knowing a lecture was going to come her way. "I don't know…" They were both silent. Sakura wondered why Higure hadn't said anything yet. "I'm sorry…"

"We'll talk about this more when we get home," Higure snapped. "Talk to your parents and head home immediately, understand?"

"Yes sir," Sakura muttered. Higure turned around and walked to the exit. Sakura looked back over her shoulder, wondering what type of punishment her uncle would have for her when she got home. Turning back around, staring at her parents' tombstones, she knew that if they were alive she'd be in just as much trouble with them. "What was I supposed to tell him? He was going to freak out either way. Besides, what right did Kakashi have to tell him about this mission anyway?" Sakura groaned in frustration, squatting down in front of her parents as she clutched the sides of her head.

"I know I should've told him about the mission, but I…I don't know what I was supposed to say. I don't want him doing something stupid that would get him into trouble. You both know he's already hated by most of the village because he's a retired shinobi! Nobody goes unpunished when they retire as early as Uncle Higure! The last thing he needs to do is storm into Danzo's office and start demanding that I be removed from a mission as serious as this one." A chilly wind blew, sending a shiver through Sakura's body. She brushed some of her hair back out of her face and took a deep breath.

"I know he only does it because he cares, but I am capable of taking care of myself." Sakura sighed, running a hand through her hair. "But that doesn't mean I should lie to him." The kunoichi stood up and pressed her hands together, praying for her parents in silence. After a moment, Sakura opened her eyes and turned back to head home.

* * *

Konan's team darted through the forest, fully rested and ready to cover as much ground as possible. They stopped in a clearing, much to Naruto's confusion. "Hey, Konan why're we stopping here?"

"We're already inside the Land of Frost," Konan said, scanning the surrounding area with her eyes.

"Huh, when did that happen?"

"Awhile ago," Haku replied with a smile. "You hadn't noticed that the plants and trees had frost over them?" Naruto gave a blank stare at Haku before looking around. Sure enough, nearly everything had a thin layer of frost over it. "Do we know where this Deidara is going to meet with the Land of Water's forces ma'am?"

"Just a few miles south of the one of the bandit villages around the eastern part of the country," Konan answered. "The bandit village in question is just up ahead, so Deidara and the others will be meeting in that general direction in a few days."

"Days," Naruto shouted. "What're we supposed to do for days?"

"First we'll find a decent place to set up camp. The Land of Frost's nights are well below freezing. If we don't find a cave, or someplace inside to stay for the nights we'll die." Naruto's face dropped in shock. He didn't want to be taken out by bad weather! "Haku, you and Zabuza have been through this village once before correct?"

"Yes ma'am," Haku replied. "We actually setup a hideout nearby. I can go ahead and make sure it's still there and that nobody is using it."

"Good, take Gaara with you." Haku nodded and looked to Gaara. The Jinchuriki turned to the ice user and nodded to him. Haku went on ahead with Gaara right behind him. "Naruto, you and I are going to start your elemental training."

"Seriously Konan," Naruto shouted, his enthusiasm sky-rocketing.

"First, we'll start by figuring out what type of element affinity you have." Konan reached into her pouch and held out a piece of paper. "Transfer some of your chakra into this card. Depending on what happens to it will determine your element." Naruto nodded, grabbing the card. Effortlessly, he funneled chakra into it, causing the card to split in half.

"What's that mean Konan-chan?" The blue haired woman smiled as she looked at the curious Naruto.

"It means that your elemental affinity is wind. Lucky us, because you have three people who can use wind style jutsus with you." Naruto grinned as widely as he could and clenched his fists to keep himself from exploding as he beamed happily.

"Seriously?"

"I'm not sure about their affinity, but I know that Haku has to know some wind style to use his kekkei genkai. Gaara is from the Land of Wind, so it's obviously implied. And I know more about wind than any other element, so it looks like I picked the right team for this mission."

"AWESOME!" Naruto jumped and cheered in joy, flailing his arms wildly until he landed on the ground. "So what's first?"

"To use wind chakra, you must understand how it's meant to be used Naruto." The blonde nodded eagerly. Konan wondered if he was even paying the slightest bit of attention. "Wind chakra is meant to be compressed as much as possible, so it can cut through anything. It's a combinations of brute strength and-," Naruto raised his hand, cutting Konan off. The blue haired woman sighed, putting a hand on her hip. "Yes Naruto?"

"Can you just start teaching me how to use it?" Konan groaned, smacking her palm against her face.

'_This is going to take awhile…'_

* * *

Sakura stood outside of the front door of her house. She didn't know what to do once she walked to the other side. Her uncle was undoubtedly furious with her, and with good reason. Still, Sakura had no clue how Higure would react to this news. Obviously she'd get a lecture, maybe yelled at.

The kunoichi sighed heavily, _'Standing out here won't solve this problem…'_ Sakura took a deep breath and walked into her home. "Uncle Higure?"

"In the kitchen." Sakura took another breath then walked towards the kitchen. To her shock, Higure was cooking and humming lightly to himself. "Hungry?"

"Um…a little I guess…?"

"Lunch'll be ready in a couple of minutes." Sakura blinked in shock. She looked over her shoulder to make sure she was in the right house before looking back to her uncle. "Sit." The kunoichi jumped a bit before darting towards the table. Higure turned the stove off, placed a lid on the pot then walked towards the table. Sakura placed her hands in her lap and stared at her knees as her uncle took a seat across the table from her. "So…Kakashi told me your mission has been moved up to next week."

"N-next week," Sakura shouted, her head snapping up in shock.

"The Tsuchikage replied quickly to Danzo's letter and said a team from both Suna and Konoha to ensure of their alliance was secure." Sakura's shocked expression quickly turned into a confused one. Higure leaned back in his chair, observing the look on his niece's face. "I'm still peeved you didn't tell me ya know."

Sakura's head lowered down in shame as she murmured, "I'm sorry…"

"Don't worry. I _was_ really mad, but then I realized nothing I do could change that. So, instead I'll just have to prepare you for the worse." Sakura's brow rose in curiosity. Higure leaned forward in his chair, putting his hands together on the table. "Is Anko going to put your team through any specialized training for battling Iwagakure shinobi just in case?"

"Um…she hasn't said anything about it. She didn't fight in the last war like you did Uncle. Besides, they use earth based attacks, specialize in close to mid-range combat. So I have to just keep my distance and-,"

"You think you'll be able to keep your distance in the heart of their village?" Sakura's eyes moved up as she thought about such an outcome. "The people of Iwagakure are hard-headed and proud shinobi. They're also very dangerous. They were winning the last war before Minato Namikaze and his team destroyed one of their main supply lines for them. And do remember that before they attacked Konoha then made a failed attempt to attack the Land of Wind, and we had Hanzo and his village aiding us. In short: Iwagakure is not to be taken lightly. You know about the elemental wheel right?"

"You mean how each element is set up in a circle, and how one element is stronger against another, but also weak against a different one?"

"Right. Earth jutsus are weak against lightning jutsus, which is why I'm assuming Kakashi was put in charge of the mission. Also, Iwagakure has a small clan of bug users, which were all thought to be killed in a genocide started by the Aburame Clan, which would explain Shino. And undoubtedly Hiashi Hyuga wouldn't let his daughter run into a dangerous village without filling her head with as much information that we have on Iwagakure."

"So basically my team will be the only ones running in blind…great."

"Most likely you'll be sent in as backup for Kakashi's team, and each person from your team will be partnered up with someone from Kakashi's team. I can't say for sure who will be partnered with who, but you have to be prepared regardless."

"They have lightning tags that can be attached to kunai don't they," Sakura asked. "Maybe we could request that Lord Danzo give my team some for the mission."

"Lightning tags aren't very cheap to purchase, hard to make, and very hard to come by. The ones he did probably have he gave to the Kurosuki Family or some other gang as a way to gain their trust. You might be able to get a few, but not enough for your entire team." Sakura sighed, placing her elbow on the table and her chin in her hand. "Which brings me to my next point…

"Kakashi told me the worse case scenario: that you all would have to take on the Tsuchikage yourselves and take him down." Sakura's eyes softened, looking up at her uncle. His matching emerald eyes were hardened and sharp as he spoke, "Keep your distance. The Tsuchikage Onoki has two very special abilities. He can fly around, an ability which is unknown by everyone in the world. He also has a jutsu style called Dust Style, which is very, very dangerous."

"Have you fought with the Tsuchikage before Uncle?"

Higure shook his head, "No. But of course after Konoha's alliance with the Land of Earth, nothing in that village was a secret from Danzo and the others. He made sure that he revealed Onoki's abilities to the village and his allies, as well as a list of every major forbidden jutsu and kekkei genkai. It was an act of humiliation more than anything else."

"Do they have a way to counter the Dust Style," Sakura asked, sounding hopefully but knowing that it wasn't likely.

"No," Higure murmured, shaking his head. "Danzo didn't want to put too much strain on Onoki. He knew that if pushed too far, Iwagakure would die fighting against them instead of just bending over and…" Higure's eyes shifted to his young niece before they moved back to the side. "If you _do_ by any chance have to fight him…avoid that Dust Style at all costs. He can utilize it at close and long range. And if Onoki hits you, it'll destroy you on a molecular level."

"How reassuring," Sakura replied with a nervous smile and a shrill voice. Higure sighed, rubbing his forehead stressfully.

"I hate letting you go out on a mission like this. But I know I don't have a choice." Sakura's head lowered a bit before moving her eyes up to her uncle.

"Uncle Higure…I…the reason I didn't tell you was-,"

"You didn't want me doing something stupid right?" Sakura's face lit up in shock. To her further surprise, Higure was actually smiling cockily. "You could try having a bit more faith in me Blossom." Sakura turned her head away, blushing a bit at her uncle's nickname for her. "All I need is for you to promise me that you'll be safe. Then you can go on all the S-ranked missions you want." Sakura looked at her uncle quizzically for a moment before he swiftly added, "And you have to keep your promise."

"Safe and S-rank…those two terms seem contradictory Uncle." Higure chuckled before walking back to the stove. "I also want to make a habit of _not_ going on S-rank missions. Believe it or not I didn't sign up for this."

"I know," Higure laughed. "I just don't understand why you think I'm such an unreasonable hard-ass." Sakura shrugged, standing up to help Higure with the food. "I also want to put you through some more training before you head out if that's alright."

"Yeah no problem," Sakura replied with a smile. As the two Haruno's sat the food down on the table, Sakura threw her arms around Higure. The retired man looked down in shock and utter confusion. "I promise I'll be safe Uncle Higure…"

"Just be sure to keep that promise," Higure whispered, patting Sakura on the head. "I'm sure your parents would kill me if you died at such a young age."

Sakura chuckled, releasing her uncle to punch him playfully in the stomach. Higure groaned before reaching out and putting his niece into a headlock. Sakura shrieked, trying to wrestle out of her uncle's grip as he started rubbing the top of her head roughly with his knuckles. Finally, Sakura managed to slip out of her uncle's grasp, hopping up and down with her fists raised ready to fight. Higure laughed as he shook his head and motioned to the table. Sakura narrowed her eyes skeptically before lowering her fists. The kunoichi started to fix her hair a bit before she heard the front door open.

"Hello," a small voice called out. "Miss Sakura?"

"In here Midori!" A little girl with brown hair pulled up into a top-knot and bangs handing just above her eyebrows entered with a wide, friendly grin. "What're you doing here Midori?" Sakura noticed the backpack in the little girl's hand. "Oh, you need my help to study right?"

"Yes ma'am," Midori replied with a nod. The young girl turned to Higure and bowed her head in respect. "I hope I'm not intruding sir."

"Oh gosh no," Higure exclaimed, waving his hand about carelessly. "And you know you don't have to call me sir Midori."

"It makes him feel old," Sakura whispered. Higure narrowed his eyes angrily at Sakura, causing her and Midori to giggle. "Have you eaten yet? We were just getting ready to eat lunch."

"Alright!" Higure stepped back, allowing the two girls to get to the food first.

"You don't care if we eat in the living room by any chance do you," Sakura questioned as she picked up a pair of plates. The smug smile on her face left no room for argument.

"No, just keep the food off the carpets."

"Holy crap what smells good," a loud, booming voice shouted from the living room. Higure's face fell in immediate agitation while Sakura's paled in fear and embarrassment. Zaku and Dosu poked their heads into the kitchen, the former grinning while the later smiled with his eyes. "Heya Higure sir," Zaku greeted. "Mind if we crash here?"

"Crash," Higure repeated, a single brow popping up questioningly.

"Well they're fuming our apartments for bugs," Dosu explained, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Because _somebody_ had to pants Shino in the middle of the damn village!"

"Dosu," Sakura snapped, placing her hands over the young Midori's ears.

"Whoops," Dosu replied, placing a hand over his masked mouth. "Sorry." Sakura groaned, rolling her eyes as she removed her hands. "But my point remains that Zaku is an idiot!"

"Hey, he seemed to take it really well. How was I supposed to know he'd infest our apartment with bugs?"

"Oh sure, expect the quiet, reserved Shino who has ninety percent of his face covered to SHOW EMOTION! Good night you're an idiot!"

"Uh, hello, old married couple," Higure spoke, pointing to Zaku and Dosu. "Give several reasons why I should let you in my house."

"We'll help clean up," Zaku offered.

"His house is spotless as is," Dosu murmured. Zaku paused, tapping his chin as he started to get lost deep in thought. Higure's deadpanned expression remained still, waiting for either an actual answer or a smart-ass remark followed by the two boys flat on their faces on the street.

"We'll redo the roof of your house, free of charge," Zaku exclaimed. Dosu's eyes widened in fear, while Higure's widened in excitement.

"Done!"

"Wait, what," Dosu shouted.

"You two can sleep in the living room. The couch unfolds into a bed. Don't turn my house into a mess while you're here, and watch your mouth around Midori or else you're out on the street got it?"

"Yes sir," Zaku replied.

"Wait, roofing his house," Dosu questioned in a shrill voice. "Have you seen how much roof he has?"

"Oh please, we'll only stay here until we leave for the Land of Earth, and then we can move back in. This man," Zaku pointed intently at Higure while staring at Dosu, "hates us with a passion."

"True story," Higure quickly chimed.

"And he's letting us live in his house for a week. He has to tolerate us for a WHOLE week until we go out on that mission to the Land of Earth, and all we have to do is redo the roof on his house. I'd say that it's a fair trade." Dosu crossed his arms, grumbling in annoyance and defeat.

"Alright, make your plates, hang out in the living room and don't bother me," Higure replied as he headed out of the kitchen.

"Aren't you going to eat Uncle," Sakura asked.

"I'll just eat whatever is left over. I've got a book I need to catch up on anyway." Sakura stepped forward, expecting him to head out of the house, but instead he headed up the stairs. Something still bugged Sakura about her uncle just leaving. Maybe he just didn't want to be around Dosu and Zaku right now?

Sakura turned around at the sound of her teammates fighting over the amount of noodles the other took. "Hey," the kunoichi snapped as she stomped forward. "Save some for the rest of us you pigs!"

* * *

Higure closed his bedroom door quietly. He walked over to his bed and sat down on the edge, sighing heavily to himself. Despite the fact he said he was okay with Sakura going on a life-threatening mission, the truth was he couldn't stop worrying. What if she didn't come back? Higure groaned, running his hands through his hair to try and rid himself of that thought. He lifted his head up, his green eyes moving to a picture on his nightstand. He slowly reached out and lifted the framed picture up and held it in front of him with both hands. It was a picture of Satoru, Sakura's father, holding him in a headlock while Saiki stood by laughing. Higure sighed, wiping off a thin layer of dust with his thumb.

"I have a feeling neither of you would let her go on this mission if you were still alive," Higure whispered. He huffed bitterly to himself before shifting his eyes to the wall. _'Then again neither of you probably would've retired either…'_ Higure placed the picture back on the nightstand. He stared at in longingly, as if it would take him back to the past when things seemed so much easier for him.

A light tapping on his window caused Higure to snap his head up. A familiar brunette with purple tattoos on her cheek stood in the window, waving to him frantically. Higure quickly got up and rushed to the window, opening in as quickly as he could.

"Rin, what're you doing here?"

"I just wanted to check up on you," Rin whispered. "Kakashi told me about the upcoming mission involving his and Anko's team."

"And what's wrong with the front door?" Rin slipped into the room, closing the window behind her.

"I want to help if I can. I spoke with Danzo to see if I could be recruited for the mission to keep an eye on Kakashi, and of course Sakura. He said no, because he doesn't want to do you any favors Higure." Rin looked up at the older man, a worried look in her eyes. "He said he'd let me go if you promised to come out of retirement."

"How about he sticks his thumb up, sits down and-,"

"Higure," Rin snapped. The retired shinobi sighed, annoyed that he didn't get to finish that sentence. "This is for Sakura. Despite the fact that sending me would increase the chances of success, Danzo isn't going to hear of it because he knows it's for Sakura. He sees this as leverage to use against you."

Higure crossed his arms, his eyes drifting to the floor. Anko had no real experience with Iwagakure shinobi, but Rin was in the war along with Kakashi and Minato. She saw the worse of the that country's ninjas, and she knew what they were fully capable of. It would be stupid not to send Rin with Kakashi.

"Danzo will fold," Higure murmured. "Without me having to come out of retirement."

"You do realize that he'd be willing to risk Kakashi to make a point. You retiring was like a slap in the face for Danzo." Higure's eyes moved up, a smirk forming on his face at the thought. Rin snapped her fingers noisily, "Pay attention. You know he won't let this go by idly, especially if there's anyway he can pull you out of retirement."

"I'll talk to him," Higure murmured.

"You talk to him," Rin repeated in surprised outrage. She made sure to keep her voice down however. "You're really sure that's the best idea?"

"Even Danzo can't argue with logic. I just have to convince him that sending you is the best choice for the mission. He's old and senile anyway, I'm sure I can persuade him." Rin opened her mouth to speak, but realized that arguing with Higure was almost as bad, if not worse, than arguing with Danzo.

"Just remember this is about Sakura," Rin said, pointing her finger in Higure's face. "Satoru and Saiki were important to me and my sensei too you know. So if you have to, put your pride aside to keep Sakura safe."

"I will," Higure murmured solemnly. Rin stared at the older man for a moment before turning to the window. She opened it, looked around for a second before springing out into the streets. Higure walked forward, placing his hand on the window before pausing. "Women…" The window slowly slid shut.

* * *

Orochimaru entered Danzo's office with an annoyed brow raised to the old man's back. "Lord Danzo," the Sannin greeted with a small bow. "Would you mind explaining why our mission has been…delayed?"

"Apparently Hanzo learned of Takigakure's whereabouts as well," Danzo murmured.

"Really," Orochimaru murmured, a certain gleam in his eyes.

"Yes. He told me he wants a strike team to meet him and his forces on the border of the Waterfall Country and the Land of Fire. Of course we'll have to give them a day's head start in order to meet on time."

"Of course. If that's all my lord, then I'll inform my students and-,"

"Not so fast." Orochimaru stopped at the door, looking back over his shoulder.

"Yes my lord?"

Danzo turned around, his single wrinkled eye scanning Orochimaru curiously. "Do you know how Hanzo learned of Takigakure's whereabouts?"

"How would I know," Orochimaru questioned with a shrug. "I only learned about it when you told me."

"I just find it…peculiar that he found out before I did." Orochimaru's eyes narrowed, knowing that the Hokage was implying something. Danzo turned his body towards his former disciple. "Know this Orochimaru: if you're planning something I will find out, and I will kill you. Your ambition for power is the reason I preferred you to your teammates. But now I'm questioning whether or not you can be trusted."

"I assure you my lord: I am without question loyal to you and only you." Danzo narrowed his eye. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must go inform my team." Orochimaru bowed his head again then exited the Hokage's office.

The Sannin chuckled to himself as he walked through the halls of the Hokage's mansion. Danzo wasn't getting as dull as Orochimaru hoped. The truth was that Orochimaru had one of his spies mixed with Danzo's Takigakure scout team to send a separate message to Hanzo once they found said village. Orochimaru knew that when Danzo passed on, or he decided to kill the old man himself, Hanzo's trust and allegiance would be the hardest to secure. Those two had been cohorts since the early beginnings of Danzo's reign. Any successor of Danzo's wouldn't have the same level of trust and respect in Hanzo's eyes without having some time to build up beforehand.

A mission such as this was a perfect opportunity to build Hanzo's confidence in the sinister Sannin.

Orochimaru's eyes flickered as he saw someone approaching him. The Sannin stopped, a sneer coming across his face as Higure stopped in front of him. The two stood still, staring each other at eyelevel in silence.

"Orochimaru-san," Higure greeted with a small bow.

"My, my, I haven't seen you in these halls for quite sometime Haruno. How long has it been, thirteen years?"

"Maybe more," Higure replied with a shrug. "Is Danzo still in his office?"

"Indeed he is. Do you need to talk with him?"

Higure nodded, "Yes I do."

Orochimaru held his arm out, stepping to the side, "Then by all means allow me to escort you. Knowing how much lord Danzo just 'loves' you I think it would be best if you had a friend there to help you."

"Thank you Orochimaru-san." Higure continued down the hall with his senior by his side.

Orochimaru was one of the few people who didn't make a huge deal out of Higure's retirement. While Higure didn't exactly trust Orochimaru he did honor the fact that he was his senior, and that he respected his retirement.

Orochimaru stepped forward, stopping Higure while he knocked on the door. "Lord Danzo, you have a visitor."

"Who is it?" Orochimaru smiled, flashing his gaze to Higure before opening the door wide and walking in.

The Hokage looked up from his files, his eye frozen as he saw the retired shinobi. Higure walked in, allowing Orochimaru to close the door behind him. Danzo leaned back, resting his elbow on the arm of his chair. Orochimaru walked to the side of the room, his serpent eyes moving back and forth between the others in the room.

"Well…this is unexpected," Danzo murmured. "Are you finally coming out of retirement in exchange for letting Rin go on the mission to the Land of Earth?" Orochimaru's eyes flashed to the Hokage. He never mentioned any such mission to him.

"No lord Hokage, I merely wished to discuss the mission." Danzo's wrinkled hand balled tightly into a fist, something that both Higure and Orochimaru noticed.

"Are you saying there might be some oversight I might have missed?"

"No, not at all. I just wish to express my opinion to you so that there could be a higher chance of completing the mission to Iwagakure so that my niece can come back safely, should the worse happen."

"Onoki is an ally of Konoha, and I have no doubt in my mind that he will remain loyal to our alliance."

"Then why bother sending a team over there in the first place," Orochimaru questioned. Higure and Danzo's eyes shifted to the Sannin. He wasn't exactly pleased Danzo didn't tell him about this mission. Helping out Higure this once would make his point to Danzo. The Hokage and retired shinobi turned to each other, the former a bit ticked.

"He's got a point," Higure said casually.

"Silence!" Orochimaru smirked a bit at Danzo's annoyance. He always admired Higure's ability to effortlessly get under Danzo's skin. Of course that's probably more the fault of the Hokage than Higure.

"Forgive me for speaking out of turn my lord," the pale serpent apologized. "It was just a slip of the tongue." Danzo's eye tore through Orochimaru before shifting to Higure.

"I would just wish to express that Rin would be a good replacement for Anko in terms of team leaders for this mission. Rin and Kakashi were teammates, and are lovers as well. Not only that, but they combated Iwagakure shinobi during the war, and they know better than most how to deal with them."

"I have confidence Anko and her team will adapt," Danzo stated softly.

"They don't have to adapt if you send Rin instead. It's best for the mission and for the success of the village lord Danzo." The Hokage rose from his seat, his hand pressed on his desk.

"Since when do you care about the village?" Higure tensed and his eyes hardened. Orochimaru's smile vanished as he now watched the retired shinobi cautiously. "You retired from your life as a shinobi. You care more about that your niece than the village. The village that your niece swore to protect, and the village her parents died protecting! You turned your back on them both so you could take care of Sakura, and now you want to try and tell me how to run my village? You know how to get Rin on that team in place of Anko, and talking to me as a _civilian_ isn't going to do it Haruno." Orochimaru's eyes snapped to Danzo.

'_So that's your game old man…'_

"I believe you're being unreasonable lord Danzo," Higure replied, surprisingly in a calm voice. Orochimaru knew that the retired shinobi was trying hard to keep his anger suppressed. "What do you lose by sending Rin? Anko has no experience, and if the Iwa shinobi attack, she'll have to learn how to deal with them. And in the case of Iwa shinobi, you and I both know that there's little room for error. Rin wouldn't have to adapt. She knows how Iwa shinobi think, fight, and act."

"I'm not going to change my opinion. Anko and her students work better together because they are a team. Rin has only worked with Sakura, not Zaku and Dosu. And those two are more than a handful for Anko as it is. I don't have faith in their teamwork if Rin is on their team."

"They're not leaving until next week anyway. That gives them a week to get to know Rin and to get use to her teaching methods. Kids are more adaptable than adults, and you're asking them to adapt to combat against enemies that will try to kill them."

"I think not Haruno. Your plea doesn't hold enough weight as just a civilian."

"My lord, if I may." Higure and Danzo both turned to Orochimaru who stepped forward. "Higure makes a valid point. Plus there's that mission I'm going to depart for in a couple of days. Anko was my former student, and I'm sure she'll be a valuable asset in the sacking of Takigakure. Especially if this legendary 'Hero's Water' exists." Higure's eyes narrowed a bit on Orochimaru before shifting to Danzo.

"I'm sure you and your students, combined with Hanzo's forces will be able to take down such a small village on your own."

"But infiltration is next to impossible my lord. Remember, that village has never been successfully invaded, and with good reason. It's inside a mountain, the only passage to get to it being underwater which is basically a kill box. I have faith in my students, but having Anko would definitely increase our chances of success. With this possible upcoming war, you need all the successes you can muster. We need to deal with the Taki pestilence before we go to war, otherwise it could very well cost us. And if Iwagakure betrays us and we couldn't kill Onoki because of the teams you sent, then this mighty alliance you've spent building will be ended in the coming war."

Higure watched Orochimaru as he explained everything wrong with Danzo's plan before turning to the Hokage himself. It would've taken a person who knew how to read other people to see that Danzo was practically burning in rage. His hand was clenched tightly into a fist and his jaw was tensed.

"In a sense, the only reason you could say no is your own stubborn ego," Orochimaru continued. "But is that really worth risking our chances of success to finally take over the other countries?" Higure stared at the Hokage who glared at Orochimaru.

"Very well then," the Hokage barely spoke. "I will put Rin in charge of Anko's team for this mission and Anko into your squad."

Higure bowed his head, "Thank you Danzo." The Hokage huffed as Higure turned towards the door. Orochimaru smiled at his master before following after the retired shinobi.

Orochimaru closed the door and walked next to Higure down the halls. "I can't thank you enough Orochimaru-san."

"Oh think nothing of it old friend," the Sannin replied. "The old man needs to be set in his place time to time anyway."

"Regardless, I'm in your debt." Higure looked at Orochimaru, knowing he'd someday regret those words. The pale Sannin chuckled before looking at Higure.

"There's nothing that you have to offer me Higure. You owe me nothing." Higure and Orochimaru stopped in front of the exit. "At the Chunin Exams, your niece and her teammates displayed remarkable talent. If they died it would be such a waste of their abilities. They must be honed and refined. Something which will come with time."

"Still…" The retired shinobi held his hand out to the Sannin who readily shook, "I thank you for your help. I know sending Rin doesn't make the mission any safer, but at least they have a chance now." Orochimaru nodded as he released Higure's hand. "Now, I have to be going." The retired shinobi immediately disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Orochimaru chuckled before putting his hands in his pockets.

"Shadow clone eh? You still can't let the girl out of your sight more than a minute eh old friend?" The Sannin chuckled again as he walked down the roads of the village.

* * *

Haku moved a sheet aside as he entered his and Zabuza's old hideout. Gaara entered the cavern as well, looking around to examine the area. "Well, seems as if it hasn't been tampered with," Haku stated with a pleased smile. "We might have to find some way to set up a separate room for Konan-san though…"

"Why would we need to," Gaara questioned.

Haku turned to Gaara with a patient smile on his face, "Well, women like their privacy, especially from men. I don't think Konan would like having to undress in front of a group of kids like us." Gaara gave an empty stare at Haku. The ice user could tell by the look in Gaara's eyes that he understood everything he just said, but he was still confused as to why women needed privacy. "I'll explain it better some other time." Haku turned around, cupping his chin in his hand as he looked around the cave. "If we got our blankets and hung them from the ceiling then that might give Konan-san her own room…"

"I could just add to the cavern," Gaara offered. Haku turned around, his brow raised in interest. "With my sand I can grind up the earth and minerals to make more sand. It shouldn't disrupt the cavern's formation and it should be quiet enough that nobody nearby should be able to sense the vibrations." Haku smiled, placing his hand on Gaara's shoulder. The Jinchuriki looked down at the ice user's hand with shock. He remembered seeing Naruto do the same thing with his friends before. Gaara looked up at Haku, wondering if they had become friends as well.

"Well if you're sure then by all means go for it Gaara." The Jinchuriki nodded as Haku stepped backwards.

Gaara pulled the cork off his gourd, allowing sand to flow freely out of it. The Jinchuriki grunted as he extended his arm outward, his sand moving in the same direction. The sand hit the wall and began grinding against the solid stone. To Haku's surprise, the sand was moving surprisingly quick through the stone wall. Was it even possible for sand to grind through stone that fast?

Haku patted Gaara on the back, causing the Jinchuriki to stop and look at the ice user. "I'm going to guard the entrance to make sure nobody comes in alright. Can you handle this on your own?"

"I should be fine," Gaara replied with a nod. Haku smiled then headed to the exit as Gaara continued his drilling.

'_He's quite the impressive Jinchuriki,'_ Haku thought to himself with a smile.

* * *

Nagato ran quickly through the halls of Akatsuki's Base, zipping through and jumping over people as he made his way to the meeting hall. He rounded a corner and nearly smashed through the door, taking a second to catch his breath. In front of him, Jiraiya, Yahiko, and Tsunade all gave the Rinnengan user a puzzled look.

"Just…give me a sec…"

"Nagato," Yahiko began with an annoyed tone, "You're the one who called us here so hurry up and tell us what this is about."

Nagato held up a finger, taking one last deep breath before sitting up straight, "The Land of Snow's long lost princess has been located." Everyone's eyes lit up in shock as Nagato continued. "They've put out a large bounty to bring her back to her country and deliver her to the country's leader, Doto Kazahana."

"The Land of Snow has mostly been neutral in the involvement of shinobi affairs," Jiraiya murmured thoughtfully. "And compared to the rest of the world, their technological advancements are decades beyond other villages."

"I figure they put a bounty on the princess's head to try and avoid stepping on any toes," Nagato said. "That way they don't get dragged into a war."

"Danzo has been trying to align himself with the Land of Snow for years now," Tsunade said, turning to Jiraiya who knew this fact as well. "Doto has managed to keep him at arm's length however, not even allowing Konoha shinobi to enter the country."

"If they capture the princess then they'll have the perfect invitation to walk into the Land of Snow and talk about alliances with Doto Kazahana," Yahiko bitterly stated. "With the technology the Land of Snow has, Danzo and his forces could be unstoppable."

"The same goes for the Mizukage or Raikage," Jiraiya spoke. "We can't let another Danzo rise from the ashes of Konoha's defeat."

"So in order to ensure that the Land of Snow remain neutral we have to capture the princess and then take her to the Land of Snow," Nagato murmured. "And we just sent our only ice user out on a mission to the Land of Frost."

"We could keep the princess under lock and key," Tsunade suggested. "That way she would be in our possession and nobody else could get to her until we can formulate a proper team to go to the Land of Snow."

"The meeting with Deidara will take place in a couple of days," Jiraiya added. "It won't take more than a single day to get back to base. They might actually get back here sooner than we can capture her." The white haired Sannin stood up from his chair. "I'll formulate a team to find and capture the princess."

"Are you insane," Tsunade questioned, her tone dripping with venom. "The sight of one of the Legendary Sannin will draw attention from any idiot that sees you."

"Danzo knows this would be a once in a lifetime chance for him. If he can get the Land of Snow's technology, then he'd be all but unstoppable. He'll send out twenty teams of ANBU Black Ops to secure the princess. This isn't a mission where we can send out a couple of kids with an adult and expect them to complete it. I'll make a team, inform you all and then head out. If we're going to have a chance then I'll have to leave today."

Jiraiya headed towards the door as Tsunade was ready to bark at him. Nagato watched as his sensei walked past him. Despite the fact Nagato respected Jiraiya more than any other person, he did question if his sensei's plan was a good one.

"I'll help him," Yahiko offered as he moved around the table and towards the door. "That way he doesn't have to waste time reporting to us and can head out immediately after getting a team together." Nagato and Tsunade stared at the door after Yahiko exited. The redhead turned to the Sannin and bowed his head before leaving as well.

* * *

Naruto cried out as he was launched backwards, bouncing off the ground twice before landing on his back. Konan sighed, rubbing the side of her head with her fingertips. "This is why I say explaining how the wind element works would be better for you."

"You told me the scissors metaphor already," Naruto panted, his chest rising heavily as he spoke. "I…I just have to keep doing this until I finally get it." The Jinchuriki sat up, a confident smile on his face. "That's how I learned the Rasengan remember?" Konan smirked as she went back to those memories. She watched from a distance as time after time, the blue orb of chakra exploded in his face. But he never gave up, and he finally mastered his father's jutsu.

"Alright, but let's continue this tomorrow kay? No sense in you killing yourself on the first day." Naruto chuckled as he took Konan's extended hand to help him up. "You actually did better than I expected for your first day."

"Yeah," Naruto breathed. "I don't feel like I did too much to be honest."

"Wind style chakra is the rarest of all chakra types, and it's one of the hardest to teach. For a knucklehead like you, the progress you made was actually superb." Konan ruffled Naruto's hair, getting a surprised laugh from the boy before he wrenched his head away. "Besides, I'll tell you how to cheat in your training tomorrow." The blonde turned his head to his new sensei, who was smiling to herself as she kept her eyes on the trial ahead. "When we find Haku's old hideout, I'll go over the strategy when we find Deidara. Think you can at least pay attention to that?"

Naruto chuckled, putting his hands behind his head. "Well yeah, I don't want to wind up in little Jinchuriki bits all over the country." Konan laughed, putting her arm around Naruto's shoulders as the two friends continued down the trail.

* * *

At the border of the Land of Frost, a man wearing a heavy black trench coat stood for a moment. "This is where Gaara the Jinchuriki is," the man asked, looking back over his shoulder.

"Yes," a figure from the shadows replied, leaning back against a nearby tree with his arms crossed over his chest. "I've also confirmed that Naruto Uzumaki is with him."

"Two Jinchuriki for the price of one eh?"

"Your mission is to only capture Gaara, and might I note, alive Kakuzu." The masked bounty hunter huffed before turning to the shaded figure. "Naruto Uzumaki is not of your concern…"

"If I can rake in two massive bounties why wouldn't I," Kakuzu questioned. "I could give Naruto to the Land of Fire, and Gaara back to the Land of Wind and land two big bonuses. It would certainly help our goal."

"Not if both countries get their Jinchuriki. Then Danzo will be able to stampede over the other countries in his conquest. Just capture Gaara."

"I'm assuming there are other shinobi that'll get in the way?"

"Naruto and Gaara are with two other Akatsuki members. One of them is their founding members, a woman from Amegakure, Konan. The other is a boy with a special kekkei genkai belonging to the Yuki Clan."

Kakuzu hummed in intrigue, "The Yuki Clan eh? I haven't dealt with one of them in quite awhile. I thought they were all driven to the point of extinction."

"Evidently not. I'm assuming the reason for Akatsuki activity in this country would be the fact that Deidara of Iwagakure is meeting with a group of shinobi from Kirigakure. Odds are Akatsuki wants Deidara for themselves."

A cold, humored laugh came from Kakuzu, "Deidara again eh?"

"I'm sure the Yuki Clan survivor will make you a reasonable sum, especially since he was working with Zabuza Momochi for quite some time. A founding member of Akatsuki would undoubtedly bring in a lot of money. Just remember: Gaara is to remain alive, as is Naruto Uzumaki."

"Kill everyone except the Jinchuriki eh," Kakuzu muttered. He turned around, looking at his boss for a moment. "And of course spare your precious Kiri shinobi right 'Mizukage'?" The figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing himself to be Madara Uchiha.

"If you wish to obtain money for all the deaths that will soon be committed, then yes, spare the Kiri shinobi. As for Deidara…well, I don't care about him. If you leave him alive, good. If you can kill him and get a bounty from Konoha or Iwa, also good."

"I've never had to leave so many people alive before," Kakuzu stated as he turned back to the border. "I take it you're not helping in this fight right?" The mercenary looked back and Madara was gone. "Only my transportation…" Kakuzu turned back around and marched into the Land of Frost with his eyes set and determined.

* * *

Jiraiya stepped outside of the base with a small team behind him. Zabuza was right behind the Sannin with his sword on his back. Obito strolled up in suite of the swordsmen and Shizune right behind him. Hana stood at the entrance, her arms around Itachi's neck as they said their last goodbyes. Zabuza stopped, turning around as he watched the two young lovers.

"Hurry up," Zabuza barked. Hana scowled, but Itachi smiled.

"Be careful," the Uchiha whispered.

"Yeah, yeah," Hana replied before giving Itachi a swift kiss before running to catch up with the team.

Jiraiya looked around carefully as his team caught up with him. The Sannin turned around and put his hands on his hips. "Alright, we move in formation to the Land of Hot Water. Obito, with your eyes you'll take lead. Zabuza, you're behind Obito. Shizune as the group's medic you'll be located in the center. I'll be behind her, and Hana will be behind me."

"Clever," Zabuza muttered. "Keep your eyes in front, nose in back, heavy hitters in the center, and the medic surrounded by everyone. You're smarter than you let on Jiraiya."

The Sannin laughed, waving his hand about, "Oh stop it. You flatter me."

"Alright, are we moving our or are we kissing ass," Obito asked before jumping into the treetops. The others moved to follow the Uchiha quickly. Hana looked back over her shoulder, sighing as she thought of Itachi. The Inuzuka shook her head, focusing on the mission now.

* * *

Danzo stacked another file in the completed pile. The door opened, causing the Kage to look up. A group of shinobi in cloaks and hoods walked in and bowed down on one knee. "You four are being tasked with a very special mission. I will not allow failure, do you understand? You are to capture Princess Koyuki, the long lost niece of Doto Kazahana, the Land of Snow's leader. This is our only chance to establish an alliance with the Land of Snow and gain access to their immense stockpile of technological weapons. Do you four understand your objective?"

"Yes sir," the four shinobi replied in unison.

"Good…now move out." The shinobi bowed their heads further before vanishing in a blur. "My Root agents will not fail me…"

**

* * *

So, lots of nothing going on in this chapter right? Sorry about that. I promise the next chapter will have more stuff happening since I'll jump forward a few days. It's hard trying to keep everything on the same time table. Still, hopefully this chapter was a good update, but I'll let the reviews be the judge of that. Have a splendid day everybody =)**


	21. Fight to the Death in the Land of Frost

Naruto groaned in concentration, his hand on the base of a tree. He had been exercising his wind style chakra for a few days now. His newest test was to see if he could split a tree in half with just his chakra. Konan, his current sensei, sat across the clearing with a stern look on her face. She wasn't disappointed with Naruto, but the fact that there was no word about Deidara of the Kiri shinobi. They were well past the time when they were supposed to meet. What could've been stalling them?

Naruto yelped, jerking his hand back in pain. Konan's head turned to the young blonde who shook his hand in pain. In a second, Konan moved across the clearing, looking at Naruto's hand. Somehow, the boy had over a dozen splinters in the palm of his hand. Konan looked up, seeing a large hole in the side of the tree. He was making progress at the very least.

"Hold still Naruto," Konan said. She pulled out a piece of paper, flowing her chakra into it to mold the paper into a pair of tweezers. Naruto winced each time a splinter was pulled out of his hand. "You didn't focus your chakra correctly."

"I kinda noticed," the Jinchuriki replied through another wince.

"You're making progress though," Konan added, looking up at Naruto with a smile. The blonde smiled back, chuckling a bit as he used his other hand to rub the back of his head. Konan pulled out another splinter before she heard Gaara and Haku coming back from a scouting mission. "Still no sign of them," Konan asked, pulling out another splinter.

"No ma'am," Haku replied. "And we haven't missed them either. Perhaps they changed the location of their meeting?"

"I haven't heard word from any of the other towns though," Konan muttered. "Plus there haven't been any signs of Kiri activity or of Deidara. Something is wrong."

"Maybe Deidara decided to meet them in the Land of Water instead," Naruto suggested.

Konan shook her head, "If he goes into the Land of Water, then he's outnumbered and the Kiri shinobi can do whatever they want in order to make him serve them. He's not dumb enough to walk onto enemy soil like that." Konan pulled the last splinter out of Naruto's hand, smiling up at him to confirm she was done.

"Time to continue training," Naruto shouted loudly. As he turned around, Haku and Konan gave a confused and perplexed look.

"You just don't stop do you," Haku asked.

"Nope," Naruto replied, as he slammed his hand back on the tree.

Konan smiled, as she always had when admiring Naruto's unrelenting spirit. Despite the fact that Konan _should_ stop Naruto before he hurts himself further, he was making giant leaps and bounds of progress. Normally it would've taken around a month for someone to learn the basics of wind style. But at the rate Naruto was going he would master it in a month's time.

Naruto closed his eyes, focusing his chakra into his hand and through to the tree. He had to get his chakra to the other side in order to cut the tree. If he didn't have enough chakra, the tree wouldn't cut. Too much and his hand would be full of splinters again. If Naruto could master wind style, he'd be one step closer to being able to fight Konoha, and one step closer to beating Danzo. Naruto funneled more chakra into the tree, feeling the wood weakening under his hand.

'_Come on…come on…'_ Naruto concentrated as hard as he could, trying to find the right amount of chakra to put into the tree. And image of a certain pink haired, green eyed, smiling kunoichi flashed through Naruto's mind.

His eyes snapped open as a surge of chakra shot through his hand, accompanied by a mighty roar from Naruto. The tree shook before it was split right down the middle. The sudden shock threw Naruto in front of Konan, on his back. The tree groaned as the two halves started to fall apart from one another. Konan and Haku stared with gapping expressions while Gaara's eyes merely widened in shock. Naruto groaned as he sat up, looking at the damage he caused. Not only did he split the tree in half, but apparently the tree behind it was split down the middle as well. The blonde's face lit up in glee before he looked up at Konan and started laughing.

Haku couldn't help but laugh at the destruction the boy caused before looking down at the Jinchuriki. Gaara turned his head to Naruto, smiling at the fact his friend was making such progress. Konan however was still in shock. The older kunoichi finally looked down, seeing Naruto grinning up at her from the ground. Konan finally smiled back before looking back up at the trees.

"Nice work kid," Konan finally said. Naruto started laughing again, happy over his success of wind style.

* * *

Sakura sneezed loudly, causing her teammates to look back at her with surprised looks. The kunoichi rubbed just below her nose while looking at Zaku and Dosu with an embarrassed smile. "Hey, someone is thinking about Sakura," Dosu said, jokingly elbowing Zaku's arm.

"What," the kunoichi questioned.

"Yeah, if you sneeze, it means somebody is thinking about ya," Zaku replied. "Don't you know this?"

"Hey losers," Sasuke snapped, looking back over his shoulder. "How about you shut your traps and keep your eyes peeled." Zaku and Dosu turned around, the former rolling his eyes while moving his jaw mockingly to make fun of Sasuke.

In front of the group, Kakashi and Rin walked side-by-side in silence, leading the team of six Genin. Sakura couldn't help but notice that for a couple they seemed awfully distant. In the week before, when Sakura was told that Rin would replace Anko on this mission, she made more of an effort to work on her medical ninjutsu with the older brunette. She had made quite a bit of progress, and even learned how to use medical ninjutsu in a combat situation for offensive purposes. As a side-effect, Sakura also had even better chakra control than before. She knew that eventually she'd have to get somebody to teach her higher level ninjutsu at the rate she was learning to control chakra.

"How much longer until we get to the Land of Earth," Hinata asked her sensei.

"We've been in the Land of Earth for over half a day already," Sasuke replied coldly. "The question is how long until we get to the village?"

"It's just up ahead," Kakashi replied. "Keep on guard for any suspicious activity." The Genin all looked in different directions to keep an eye out for an ambush.

Kakashi and Rin both noticed up ahead was a group of Iwa shinobi. The two Jonin tensed as they approached, fierce glares given to the ninja ahead.

"A welcoming committee," Rin pondered.

"Whether they're friendly or not is another story…" The Iwa shinobi turned, noticing the approaching Konoha shinobi. One man with spiky hair and a dark beard walked forward, stopping a few feet in front of his group.

Kakashi kept a weary eye on the man before him before he and the others stopped in front of him. "I presume you're Kakashi Hatake," the Iwa shinobi asked.

"Indeed."

"My name is Ittan. My squad and I are here to escort you into the village." Kakashi nodded after a moment. Ittan turned around and started walking in the direction of the village.

The others in Ittan's squad waited for their leader to pass between them before following him. Sakura quickly noticed that the Iwa squad was set up around their squad. If they wanted to they could kill every last one of them.

"Stay clam," Rin's voice whispered. Sakura jumped at the sound of the older woman's voice so close. "This is a precaution for them. They're not going to attack unless we attack first."

"A-alright," Sakura whispered. As they continued forward, Sakura observed the other shinobi that surrounded them. One of them was a young man with long blonde hair that fell behind his back and a pair of glasses on his nose. For some reason he was intently focused on Shino. She looked to her left, seeing a kunoichi with dark brown hair tied up into a ball on her head and a sword on her back. For some reason the woman didn't sit right with Sakura.

"Keep your eyes forward Sakura," Rin softly snapped. "These shinobi would find any reason to pounce us." The pink haired kunoichi turned her head forward, trying not to let her curiosity get her or anyone else killed. She knew the silence would probably be killing Zaku and Dosu both.

"So how long will you be staying Kakashi-san," Ittan asked.

"No more than a week. We're just here to make sure that Akatsuki hasn't been around the village. We don't need a repeat of what happened in Konoha happen to any of our allies." Ittan nodded in thoughtfully. Kakashi observed the man closely before continuing, "There haven't been any reports of strange activity have their?"

"I'm not sure Kakashi-san. You'd have to ask Onoki-sama or his son Kitsuchi-sama. They'd know more than I would."

"Alright then." The Konoha Genin looked forward, seeing the village of Iwa just up ahead. Sakura couldn't help but feel her stomach wrenching nervously. At the gates, a large man with a number of Iwa shinobi stood between the Konoha shinobi and the village.

"Lord Kitsuchi sir," Ittan greeted, falling to one knee with the other Iwa shinobi. "The visitors from Konoha have arrived."

"So I see," the large man, Kitsuchi said.

"I am Kakashi Hatake and these are-,"

"We know who you all are White Fang of Konoha," Kitsuchi snapped. "I'm to escort you to the Tsuchikage so that you may report to him. He'll allow you to conduct your search of the area, and then you'll leave."

"Understood Kitsuchi sir," Kakashi replied. The large man turned and started to walk into the village. The Konoha group followed him, once again being surrounded by a larger group of Iwa shinobi.

Sakura started shaking, her adrenaline building as she entered the village. She couldn't help but feel nervous. She had no idea if the shinobi would attack at any second or not. Sakura jumped as she felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Rin standing next to her. The older medic looked down with a slight smile on her face.

"Don't show them fear Sakura. If they see that you're scared of them they'll only use that against you." The kunoichi swallowed the nervous lump in her throat and nodded. Sakura couldn't describe how relieved that Rin was with them.

Kitsuchi and Kakashi stopped in shock. The rest of the group looked ahead, seeing a young girl diving through a merchant's stand and rolling across the ground nimbly. Behind her was a large man, who was anything but nimble as he smashed through the cart and fell to the ground.

"Come on big guy," the young girl shouted as she looked back over her shoulder. "You've gotta be faster to keep up with me!"

Kitsuchi clenched his fists and growled lowly in anger, "Kurotsuchi!" The young girl stopped and immediately stood stiff in fear of the voice. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Nothing father," Kurotsuchi quickly replied. Kitsuchi's eyes moved up as the large man finally caught up with Kurotsuchi.

"What was she doing Akatsuchi," Kitsuchi questioned the large man.

"She's not in trouble sir, honest. I was just told to keep her away from the Konoha group coming in."

"Is that them," Kurotsuchi asked. Her father opened his mouth to snap at her, but was cut off when the girl walked past him and towards the visitors. "Hey there, I'm Kurotsuchi, the granddaughter of the Tsuchikage." The girl held her hand out to Kakashi. The masked Jonin hesitated for a second before shaking the girl's hand.

"I'm Kakashi Hatake, Konoha's White Fang. These are my students: Sasuke Uchiha, Hinata Hyuga, and Shino Aburame."

"Sheesh," Kurotsuchi started to laugh, "It's a wonder you guys weren't killed on sight."

"Kurotsuchi," her father snapped.

"I mean how many of our men did you kill in the war Kakashi-san? And the Aburame Clan nearly drove our own bug using clan to extinction. Plus any dojutsu user is looked down on in the village and-,"

"KUROTSUCHI!" The girl jumped a bit in fright before turning to her now furious father. "Don't you have training to do?"

"After I meet the rest of them," Kurotsuchi snapped back. The Iwa shinobi turned around and approached the next team. "Heya, I'm Kurotsuchi. You are?"

"I'm Rin. I was put in temporary command of the second team for this mission. These three behind me are Zaku Abumi, Dosu Kinuta, and Sakura Haruno." Kurotsuchi looked to each of the Genin before she approached them with her hands on her hips.

"Haruno…are you by any chance related to a man named Satoru Teki?" Sakura's eyes widened and her jaw fell open in shock.

"H-he was my father," Sakura replied. "How do you know him?"

"Well you see-,"

"KUROTSUCHI!" Kitsuchi grabbed his daughter's arm and yanked her away from the Konoha group. "Go away now!"

"Fine," Kurotsuchi snapped, pulling her arm out of her father's grasp. The girl turned back to the Konoha group and smiled, "Nice meeting you guys." With that, the Iwa kunoichi walked down the street, leaving Sakura confused and baffled.

"Let's continue to the Tsuchikage's Castle." The group continued forward while Sakura stared at the ground.

How in the world did someone as young as Kurotsuchi know about Sakura's father? Was he some type of legend as well during the war like The Yellow Flash? She knew her father was a skilled shinobi for his time. Maybe he killed a large number of Iwa shinobi and they held a grudge against her for her father's crimes?

'_**That's so unfair! Any of those Iwa punks try to touch me and I'll kick their butts! CHA!'**_

Sakura scowled in agreement. They couldn't blame her for her father's skill during the war. A voice in the back of Sakura's head, which sounded like a certain uncle of hers, reminded her of a similar grudge she held against a certain blonde. Sakura shook her head a bit before looking up at her temporary sensei.

"Miss Rin," Sakura whispered. The medic looked down with inquisitive eyes. "How is it that someone as young as Kurotsuchi knew my father?"

"I'll tell you later. Now isn't the time to be talking about that Sakura." The pink haired kunoichi slowly nodded, turning her head forward.

* * *

Konan sat across from Naruto, who was trying to master the shape and manipulation part of his training. According to Jiraiya, Naruto would be completing Minato's jutsu if he could apply his nature chakra to the Rasengan. So far though, it proved to be more difficult than even Naruto imagined.

A swirling orb of chakra gathered in Naruto's hand, making the Rasengan. Konan nodded gently as the blonde started focusing on applying the wind chakra. He had created a small wind style Rasengan, but it wouldn't be enough for the trials the boy faced in the future. Konan wanted Naruto to be prepared for the future he faced. Wind started to gather around the Rasengan. Naruto groaned, struggling to keep it all from exploding in his hands.

"Just take it easy Naruto," Konan called out. "Don't force it alright?"

"I'm…trying…" Naruto cried out as the jutsu exploded in his face. Konan sighed as the boy flew back and smacked into a tree.

'_This is why I didn't want him to just pass by the tree-splitting exercise.'_ Naruto groaned as he slowly sat up, rubbing the back of his head. _'Though forcing too much of his chakra into the tree proved successful, he can't do the same thing to the Rasengan. He's starting to learn that now.'_ Naruto mumbled angrily to himself as he stood up and started dusting himself off. _'But the knucklehead of course refused to just go back and try to do the previous exercise correctly. He's going to kill himself before he masters this new jutsu.'_

"Naruto, take a break for now," Konan said.

"No! I still have to get this stupid thing down!"

Konan sighed, standing up and putting a hand on her hip, "I know you're upset and headstrong. But at this rate you're going to do more harm than good if you just keep trying. Take a break and then come back and do it again. There's no point in trying if you're just going to keep blowing yourself up again."

Naruto threw his arms up, screaming in frustration before plopping back down on his rear. Konan sighed, looking upon the boy with a pitied expression. She walked up and sat next to Naruto, putting her arm around the boy's shoulders.

"Look…this isn't easy to learn. This is Jonin level stuff I'm teaching you here. The fact that you've learned it this quickly is an amazing feat all its own." Naruto huffed, his expression falling into a pout. Konan shook the boy gently before continuing, "Maybe I'm just pushing you too hard. I saw how much progress you were making and I thought that a thirteen year old could learn how to manipulate chakra on the same level as a Jonin."

"I know I can do it," Naruto muttered. Though his voice was quiet, Konan could hear the determination behind his tone.

"You will get it Naruto. But for now it would be better if you just took a small break and we tried again." Again, Naruto huffed as he stared angrily at the ground. Konan knew there were fewer things that the boy hated more than to give up. She wasn't even sure if those words were in his vocabulary. She had to take an alternate approach. "What was it that pushed you in the last exercise Naruto?" The blonde's head snapped down, trying to hide his face from Konan obviously. The blue haired woman tilted her head slightly and narrowed her eyes.

"Nothing, I just…uh, did it." Konan's eyes narrowed further. Her hand slowly moved off of Naruto's shoulder and grabbed Naruto's ear. The blonde's head snapped up, an alarmed look on his face as his eyes, now wide as saucers, stared in the direction of his ear.

"Naruto," Konan threateningly spoke. "Tell me now or else."

"I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I don't know what you're t-t-t-t-t-t-talking about," Naruto replied in an idiotic stutter. Konan shrugged before she started to rub the boy's earlobe between her finger and thumb. The boy's body jolted in a fierce spasm as he tried to wrestle out of Konan's grip. The woman quickly held Naruto down and continued to rub his ear, causing Naruto to laugh hysterically. "STOP! STOP, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF EVERYTHING STOP!" Naruto thrashed around, unable to stop his laughing.

"Tell me and I'll stop tickling you Naruto Uzumaki," Konan replied. The blonde thrashed around, unable to break free of Konan's grasp.

"OKAY, OKAY, JUST STOP!" Konan stopped, keeping Naruto's ear pinched between her thumb and forefinger. Naruto panted heavily, a tear moving down from the corner of his eye as he tried to catch his breath.

"Well," Konan asked. The blonde's eyes drifted away from Konan as a deep blush heated his face.

"It was Sakura-chan…" Konan's eyes moved up in confusion. She remembered hearing that name before. In an instant it hit her, causing her to snap her eyes back down.

"That pink haired girl from Konoha?" Naruto nodded, almost disappointed to have to admit it. Konan got off Naruto, allowing him to sit up across from her. "You really did like her didn't you?" Naruto sat up, nodding again with sadness written all over his face. Konan remembered back to when she and Naruto were running from Konoha. They were cut off by Sakura, who was outright furious with Naruto. Konan couldn't believe that after all that Sakura said to him that Naruto would still hold feelings for her.

"I know it's stupid, and that it'll never happen but…I can't help but think about her. I regret hurting her, and I loved hanging out with her while I was in Konoha. But now we're enemies on opposite sides of a war…how could she ever like me?" Konan smiled, reaching out and putting her hand on Naruto's shoulder. The blonde chuckled, turning away as a new tear that welled up in his eye. "You probably think that it's real stupid of me huh?"

"No," Konan replied. Naruto stared up at his senior with a surprised look in his eyes as the tear rolled down the side of his face. Konan smiled before stroking Naruto's cheek over the trail his tear left. "I think you're a sweetheart. And if you feel so strongly about Sakura, then I know you two will be together."

"But…she hates me, and we have to fight each other and-,"

"Are you giving up so soon Naruto Uzumaki," Konan asked. The blonde's mouth froze, slightly ajar when he heard those words. "If you believe strongly enough that you and this Sakura girl can be together…then it will happen. If we can break Danzo's alliance and build the ideal world you dream of, what's to stop you then?" Naruto's mouth twitched into a smile. He started to laugh a bit, feeling a bit silly for acting like a brooding child. Konan smiled and patted Naruto on the head, ruffling his hair. The blonde groaned, pulling away from Konan's hand before shaking his head furiously. Naruto looked up and smiled at Konan.

"Thank you…"

"No problem Naruto," Konan said as she pulled the boy in for a hug. Naruto smiled, returning his friend's embrace. "Try the wind Rasengan one more time. This time use Sakura as your motivation for doing it right got it?"

"Yes." Konan released Naruto and stood up. The blonde put his hands on the ground and hopped up onto his feet. He walked over and held his hand out.

Naruto's fingers started moving to gather the chakra, like Pervy Sage taught him to do. His chakra was brought forth and swirling around into a perfect sphere. Naruto placed his hand over the Rasengan, concentrating hard as he funneled his nature chakra through his hand. The Jinchuriki closed his eyes, concentrating hard to get the balance just right.

"Come on Naruto," Konan whispered.

Naruto groaned, sweat dripping down his face. He could feel the jutsu slipping out of his control again. Just as he braced himself for the jutsu exploding in his face, a soft, familiar voice spoke to him…

'_Naruto…'_

The voice snapped something inside. Naruto's eyes popped open as he screamed, his chakra flowing furiously around him. Konan gasped, taking a cautious step back as the wind from Naruto's chakra blew outward. Naruto's hand shook violently as he focused his wind chakra into the Rasengan. The swirling orb got larger as tiny blades of wind started cracking around it.

"He's got it," Konan stated in disbelief.

Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs, his chakra exploding into the Rasengan. The blades of wind expanded out as Naruto held the jutsu high above his head. A loud, almost bell-like screech was heard as four blades of wind spun around a larger than normal Rasengan. Sweat poured down Naruto's face as he looked up at his jutsu in shock. Konan gapped in astonishment and joy.

"You did it," Konan quietly said. The blue haired woman started laugh before cheering, "You did it Naruto!" The blonde looked down at his sensei with a huge grin before chuckling. _'I can't believe it. This kid truly is amazing.'_

"What now," Naruto asked. Konan blinked in shock, perplexed by the question. "I don't know how to turn this thing off ya know."

"Oh, just stop your chakra flow into your Rasengan. Your wind chakra should just disperse with no chakra." Naruto nodded then looked up at his jutsu. He gradually stopped his chakra, causing the jutsu to get smaller and smaller. Finally, as Naruto cut off his chakra completely, the wind blew outwards in a strong gust. "Naruto…great job." The blonde looked up, chuckling nervously as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Lady Konan!" Naruto and his teacher looked over, seeing Haku and Gaara coming out of the forest. "Lady Konan, we found Deidara. He's alone in the meeting area you said he'd be at."

"Damn," the paper user muttered. "Let's move, and stick to the plan. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am," the three boys replied before following Konan into the forest. The team leader just hoped that the plan would work.

* * *

Sakura walked through the village of Iwagakure, having already met with the Tsuchikage a few moments ago. He seemed like a respectable enough leader, but for some reason Sakura didn't feel entirely comfortable around him.

"Wait up damn it," Zaku shouted. Sakura stopped and turned around, her teammate bumbling behind her. "Sheesh you walk fast."

"Well excuse the crap out of me," Sakura snapped. "I need to find that Kurotsuchi girl. I didn't ask you to come along."

"Yeah, but Dosu and Rin both told me I should. We told Kakashi and his squad that we were just scouting the village for any suspicious activity. It would just be easier to ask Rin about your dad's rep in Iwa ya know?"

"She knows something, and most likely she'd keep something from me. If I want to find out anything I need to speak with Kurotsuchi. She'd have no reason not to tell me everything."

"Unless Rin and Dosu find her fist and tell her not to tell you anything." Sakura scoffed, turning her head to look back over her shoulder.

"Please, I didn't have to be around her more than five seconds to realize she acts like you. She hardly even listened to her father, what makes you think she'd listen to a pair of Konoha shinobi." Something fell from above in front of Sakura, causing her to jump back and shriek with fright.

"Well," Kurotsuchi began with a wide grin on her face, "If you asked nicely I might listen to you." Zaku hummed curiously as he looked up to were Kurotsuchi's feet stuck to the ceiling. "What can I do ya for Miss Konoha?" Kurotsuchi fell from the roof, spinning around to land perfectly on her feet.

"I need you to tell me about my father," Sakura spoke, her face hardened with determination. Kurotsuchi looked over at the pink haired girl with shock before dusting herself off.

"Why do I have to tell you about your father? He was _your_ father after all. What can I tell you that you wouldn't already know?"

"How come you know who he was," Sakura asked. Kurotsuchi tilted her head to the side, lifting her arm up to rest her knuckles on the side of her head.

"Are you kidding me? Who in this village doesn't know about Satoru the Mountain Smasher?"

"The what," Zaku blurted out. The black haired shinobi started laughing before he asked, "What type of name is that?"

"He literally destroyed a mountain and killed an entire regiment of Iwa shinobi single handedly," Kurotsuchi bluntly stated. Zaku's jaw hit the floor and his eyes popped open in shock. Sakura gasped lightly with disbelief.

"Are…are you kidding," the pink haired kunoichi questioned.

"Wish I was," Kurotsuchi replied, leaning to one side. "It was around the time Kakashi Hatake and Minato Namikaze's teams destroyed the Kenchi Bridge, which cut off our supplies. One of the largest battle groups of Iwa shinobi gathered in the Land of Grass. They were called the Mammoth Army, and they had one mission: punch a hole right into the Land of Fire to clear a path to Konoha. Wave after wave of Konoha groups moved in and tried to stop the advancement, but nothing slowed them down as much as your side would've liked.

"So finally, Danzo builds up a group around the size of ours and sends them to stop our forces. The Mammoth forces moved out to where they believed they could cut of Konoha's army: a kill-box of a canyon. The Mammoth forces ambushed the Konoha troops and they immediately retreated. What they didn't know is that the commander of these forces, Satoru Teki, had set up a series of paper bombs around so that the canyon would fall in on itself. Combine that with his earth style jutsus, and Satoru single handedly destroyed the largest and most successful regiment in the Iwagakure army."

"Wait," Zaku muttered, his hand cupping his chin. "He destroyed a canyon. So shouldn't he be called The Canyon Smasher?"

"Mountain Smasher sounds more intimidating," Kurotsuchi replied with a casual shrug. "Plus it looks nicer on a resume." Zaku laughed before he turned his attention to Sakura.

The Konoha kunoichi's face was pale and her expression was one of absolute horror. Zaku blinked, confused by his teammate's look of terror before waving his hand around in front of her face.

"Sakura," Zaku questioned. "Anyone home?"

"I can't be here," Sakura whispered. Zaku stepped back, puzzled by what she said. "Why would I be sent here? My father…these people want to kill me. I won't make it out of here alive will I?"

"Why wouldn't you," Kurotsuchi asked. "These people respected your father as well as any hero from Iwagakure." Sakura's expression changed to a different form of shock, as did Zaku's. "Granted it's more of a begrudging respect, but if someone can take out that many foes at once they're worthy of prestige. There was even talk of a memorial after we heard of his death at the hands of the Kyuubi. But we never did. Too much controversy for a statue." Kurotsuchi crossed her arms, smiling at Sakura, "Don't worry though girly. You're probably the safest outsider in this village."

"S-seriously…?"

"Yep. And if your father's reputation won't seal the deal, then…" Kurotsuchi skipped forward, looping one arm around Sakura's and another around Zaku's, "Then being seen with the Tsuchikage's granddaughter might just do the trick."

"Define 'seen with,' because I've got some mental images going on that I'm digging right now." Kurotsuchi and Sakura both gave Zaku an annoyed look. The only boy of the group laughed, hoping he wouldn't get double the beating. Luckily for him, neither girl felt like exerting the energy to pound on him.

* * *

A blonde haired man wearing a straw hat to cover his face, and a long black robe over his body to keep himself warm stood in a clearing, murmuring bitterly to himself. Just as he turned to leave, a group of six ninjas wearing green robes over striped shirts with high collars. The blonde looked at the group cautiously, which was returned behind the groups' masks.

"Deidara the Bomber correct," one masked man asked.

"That's me, hm. I take it you're the group from Kiri I'm supposed to meet with about an…assignment?"

"That's right," the leader replied. "I am Tsurugi, and I am under orders from our Mizukage to recruit you for our upcoming campaign against Konoha." Deidara smirked, tilting the front of his hat up with his thumb.

"Huh, what could a village like Kirigakure want with an outsider like me? Don't you all have a certain level of pride that wouldn't allow you all to work with a lowly rogue like me?"

"We're getting ready to fight a war against half of the world," Tsurugi commented. "We need any edge we can get. Iwagakure, the village you formerly hailed from, has an alliance with Konoha. Having you on our side will help us fight against them."

"So what do you want from me?" Tsurugi turned to one of the ninjas who pulled out a suitcase and flipped it open. The case was stuffed entirely with cash. Deidara's only visible eye seemed uninterested

"Lord Yagura would like you to destroy Konoha." Deidara's eye widened a bit in surprise. "We've read about you and your reputation Deidara-san. You've bombed entire villages off the face of the map without so much as a spec of dust left behind in the remains. We believe that you could do the same to Konoha, or if not, then at least reduce most of it to a smoking crater on the earth."

Deidara's arms moved under his robe and he hummed thoughtfully, "That would cost more civilian casualties than shinobi. All you'd manage to do is piss of Konoha, and that definitely _would_ be an act of war."

"We're currently in talks with the Raikage about a treaty. If we can take out Konoha, the heart of Danzo's alliance, then the Land of Water and the Land of Lightning can fight this war together on even terms with the enemy. Konoha would be leaderless, and our only real threat would be the Land of Earth, a country which was forced into an alliance they never wanted to be apart of to begin with. Odds are they'll surrender soon after the war starts and then all we have to deal with is the pathetic village of Sunagakure."

"So, you want me to decide the outcome of this war before it starts hm? What's in it for me? Money is nice, but I require a certain artistic touch to all my missions. If I were to undertake this assignment, I'd be deciding the future of the world for a really long time." Tsurugi and the other hunter-nin looked to each other, confused by Deidara's patronizing tone. "True art is a single, brilliant moment of sheer and utter beauty. If I were to soil my hands with something like this, it'd ruin my reputation."

"You fool," Tsurugi roared. "You could help liberate the world and you're worried about your damned reputation!"

"Should've done your homework boys…" Deidara and the hunter-nin turned their heads to the feminine voice. Out of the woods came a woman with blue hair, wearing a long black coat with blood red clouds on it and a belt around her waist.

"Who are you," Tsurugi questioned, the patience in his voice at a low.

"I'm Konan of the Akatsuki." Deidara's eye lit up a bit with surprise. Konan looked at the hunter-nin, knowing that they'd be more likely to attack than Deidara.

"You're the group of shinobi that interrupted the Chunin Exams in Konoha, hm. Showing up just long enough to mock the higher-ups of Danzo's alliance, flaunting the Kyuubi Jinchuriki in front of them and then leaving the strongest ninja village in the world without losing a single person."

"We arrived in secret, revealed ourselves in a brief, booming moment and then left. We left a lasting impression in a short amount of time, very much like your art Deidara-san." The blonde smiled, chuckling in amusement. Konan noticed Tsurugi tense up angrily out of the corner of her eye. "As one of the founding members and leaders of Akatsuki, I would like to extend an invitation to our organization to you. We believe that you'd be a valuable asset to our group, and your abilities will be highly praised and respected by our members."

"What will working for these rogue trash gain you Deidara-san," Tsurugi questioned. "You would be remembered for all time as the great artist who destroyed Konoha single-handedly." Deidara smiled, turning to Konan to see if she would reply. The blue haired woman said nothing.

"Do you have a better offer, or should I just blow you up now," Deidara questioned. "Blowing up Konoha would definitely make a name for myself as an artist. Konoha's destruction gone in a single, brilliant blast. The smoke clears, and…nothing." Konan huffed, crossing her arms with an indifferent look.

"That seems rather anticlimactic if you ask me. It would be better if you left a lasting impression. Why blow up the village when you could destroy something with more value. Say the Hokage Monument? Also it would make you a likely target for revenge. You blow up Konoha, and you'd have a massive bull's-eye on your back. Like you said, it would cause more civilian casualties than shinobi. What happens if you don't blow up someone like Orochimaru, or Kakashi Hatake? Then your reputation as an artist will be short lived now won't it?"

"Just like the rest of my art," Deidara replied. "Sorry, but as an artist I have to go for value." Deidara threw his arm up, revealing a pair of four winged clay birds flying towards Konan.

The blue haired woman didn't bother to move as the birds closed in and exploded in front of her. Deidara huffed, lowering his arm as he watched the smoke settle. To his and the hunter-nins' shock, there was a wall of ice in front of Konan, raised by a boy with black hair, wearing an Akatsuki cloak that had a hood instead of the high collar.

"He's from the Yuki Clan," Tsurugi exclaimed.

"What's this now," Deidara murmured under his breath.

Konan's eyes moved down to the boy in front of her, breathing out a sigh of relief, "Thanks Haku…" The boy looked back over his shoulder and gave a comforting smile.

"Careful men," Tsurugi ordered, "That beast is dangerous…" Haku's eyes hardened as he glared daggers at the hunter captain.

"A beast am I," Haku questioned. The boy's eyes widened as he slammed his foot on the ground, shattering his ice into pieces. Deidara's eye narrowed curiously, watching the pieces of razor sharp ice floating in the air. "You sure you gentlemen don't want to reconsider your words?"

Suddenly, a figure shot out of the trees, directly towards Haku's back. Naruto, who was also hiding, scrambled out of the bushes to stop the figure. Haku and Konan both looked to the side in shock, seeing a hunter-nin coming straight for them with a kunai in hand. Suddenly, the man was stopped suddenly. He was suspended by sand that encased his entire body.

"What the," Tsurugi shouted. "Where did that come from!"

"I saw it lift up off the ground," a hunter-nin replied.

* * *

Hiding from a distance, Gaara held his hand open and his eyes closed as he whispered, "Sand burial…" The Jinchuriki clenched his hand into a fist, crushing the Kiri shinobi into little more than paste.

* * *

Konan smirked as she crossed her arms, "Just like you said Haku: these Kiri ninjas are predictable." Tsurugi scowled angrily that his plan was foiled so easily.

"Deidara," the hunter captain shouted, "Deal with these pests!"

"Hold on now," Deidara calmly replied, holding his hand up to the captain. "That sand…it's from Sunagakure's Jinchuriki Gaara of the Desert correct?" Konan nodded, cocking a curious brow at the young artist. "And that boy is from the legendary Yuki Clan eh? I actually encountered one of your kind before. Now there was a true artist. That woman drove me to increase the style of my own art." Deidara threw his arms back, his cloak flying up to reveal his hands in his clay pouches, "And I see none of that art here now!"

Deidara cried out as he hurled nearly a dozen clay spiders at Haku and Konan. The younger of the two launched his ice shards forward, cutting into each bomb and causing them to explode. Haku shifting into a physical combative stance. Deidara instead reached into his clay pouches again and threw another bomb forward.

Konan gently pushed Haku to the side, forming a lance out of paper before launching it forward. The paper pierced the clay owl, detonating it before it reached either Akatsuki member. Deidara smirked, finding this new challenge amusing. The artist gasped as he looked down. Half a second later, Deidara shot up into the air as a giant hand of sand reached up to grab him.

"So, using him for defense and offence hm? I can't find the Jinchuriki anywhere!"

"Men, kill these Akatsuki shinobi, and bring me the head of the Yuki monster!" The hunter-ninja shot forward as Haku and Konan prepared themselves.

"Stay back," Deidara shouted, throwing four bird bombs at the Akatsuki pair.

The Kiri shinobi stopped as the bombs went off around Konan and Haku. Deidara landed on the ground, smiling triumphantly at the cloud of smoke. Two shinobi looked back at Deidara before turning to where the Akatsuki pair was last seen. The smoke settled, and neither were in sight. In place of Konan and Haku was a giant hole in the ground, surprising the entire group.

"What the," Deidara exclaimed.

"Surprise!" Deidara turned to the side, seeing a blonde holding a swirling ball of chakra a few feet away. The artist turned, screaming in horror as he reached for his clay. Naruto thrusted the Rasengan forward, but it stopped less than an inch from his stomach. The two blondes looked at the jutsu, both equally shocked as to what just happened.

Suddenly, Naruto was pulled back by a hand that latched to the back of his Akatsuki jacket. The hand retracted to the body of a man wearing a black trench coat with his head covered in a mask. His hand connected with his arm, holding the struggling Naruto up in the air.

"Kakuzu hm," Deidara quickly stated. The artist was shaking a bit still from the fear of almost getting hit with Naruto's jutsu.

"Hello Deidara," Kakuzu greeted, holding Naruto up effortlessly. The blonde Jinchuriki screamed, throwing his limbs about wildly in an attempt to break free from his captor's control. "Hold on." Kakuzu spun around and hurled Naruto with all his might towards a tree. The Jinchuriki spun end over end before smashing into the base of a tree with enough force to cause the dense wood to crack. The masked mercenary turned back around, glaring at his rival. "Much better. Now we can have a civilized talk."

"Whenever you and I cross paths things are anything but civilized," Deidara replied defensively.

One Kiri shinobi screamed as he shot himself at Kakuzu from behind. Deidara scoffed, immediately cursing the fool for his idiocy. A hand shot up out of the ground, catching the shinobi by the throat. The shinobi tried to cry out for help, but was silenced with a sickening crack a second later. The hand attached to thick black cords tossed the corpse to the side before pulling the rest of its length out of the ground, revealing itself to be attached to Kakuzu's arm. The cords pulled the hand back in its proper place.

"Now, I'll advise you to stay out of my way, lest things end the way they did last time."

Deidara started laughing, his hands slipping into his clay pouches, "You think that's the only time I've been thrown out of a country?"

Kakuzu chuckled coldly, "I suppose not."

"Hey, you: FREAK!" The two mercenaries and Kiri shinobi turned their heads, seeing an angered Naruto walking up to them. "Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"The Kyuubi Jinchuriki," Kakuzu stated with a gleeful tone.

"Wrong idiot! That's me: Naruto Uzumaki!" Deidara's eye shifted to his fellow blonde, scowling angrily at the knucklehead.

"Hey idiot," the artist shouted, "I'd get running if I were you! Kakuzu isn't a type of enemy a kid like you can handle!"

Kakuzu huffed, moving towards Naruto only to be stopped dead in his tracks. The mercenary looked down, seeing that his feet were incased in ice. Looking back up, Kakuzu saw Naruto screaming as he closed the distance quickly with the Rasengan in hand. The mercenary growled in irritation, catching the boy by his wrist before throwing him over his back. Naruto screamed in fright before he slammed face-first into a tree. The masked mercenary screamed as he lifted his arm up and shot his fist down into the ground.

Haku yelped in fright as a fist came crashing down from above, almost punching a hole in his head. The ice user jumped up out of the tunnels Gaara made with his sand and landed on the ground across from Kakuzu. The masked shinobi retracted his hand before using his other fist to try and break the ice. All he succeeded in was cracking it.

"Definitely from the Yuki Clan," Kakuzu muttered.

"Naruto, be careful," Haku called out. "There's something different about this guy!"

"That's what I told him," Deidara screamed. Naruto groaned as he rubbed his throbbing face.

Kakuzu flung his fist forward again, too fast for Naruto to block or dodge. A flock of papers appeared out of nowhere, attempting to shield Naruto, but were too slow as well. The blonde cringed and braced himself for the crushing blow. A thunderous boom was heard, echoing across the forest. Naruto gasped, opening his eyes to see a wall of sand had protected him.

Kakuzu hummed in intrigue as his fist pulled back. The papers all swirled together, forming Konan's upper body which glared daggers at the mercenary. "So, that Jinchuriki is special to you is he? And apparently he must be close to Gaara as well." Konan's glare hardened as she narrowed her eyes on Kakuzu. "I guess I have leverage over the both of you know…"

"Naruto, run," Konan ordered.

"What," the blonde snapped.

"Get out of here now. This guy is going to use you against us." Naruto growled, stepping towards Konan in a rage.

"So now I'm a liability? You can't say you brought me on this mission to just train me Konan! I can help you, especially after developing that new jutsu!"

"You made that once," Konan snapped, whirling her head around. "We don't know what it'll do or what it _can_ do!"

"KONAN!" Naruto's tone was alarmed, causing Konan to turn her head back around.

Kakuzu broke his feet free from their icy bindings and lunged at the woman. Konan's eyes flared in anger at herself for letting her guard down. The masked mercenary threw his fist forward just as Konan erupted into a storm of papers. Kakuzu was blinded by the flapping papers. Once they cleared, he was immediately met with a fist to the face, courtesy of Naruto. Three more copies of the boy rushed forward, the first to jumping forward and punching Kakuzu in the face again. The last had a Rasengan in hand, rushing towards the off balanced merc. Kakuzu looked down at the boy, eyes wide with alarm at the swirling jutsu. Naruto screamed as he slammed the jutsu into Kakuzu's stomach. The Rasengan exploded on impact, creating a shockwave from the point of impact. However, Kakuzu didn't budge. Naruto looked up, shock and horror written all over his face.

"Big mistake," Kakuzu stated. The mercenary grabbed Naruto's throat with both hands, choking him with incredible force before lifting him off the ground. Naruto gagged, tried to suck in as much air as possible.

"Naruto," Konan shouted, flying forward with a paper lance. Haku also rushed forward, summoning an ice mirror between him and Kakuzu.

Konan hurled her weapon forward on course with Kakuzu's back. Haku shot forward, melded into his mirror and then shot out of the other side at near untraceable speeds. The lance hit Kakuzu, but bended upon impact. Haku cried out as he slashed his needles across Kakuzu's body. The boy skidded across the ground and looked at his broken needles in shock.

Kakuzu chuckled as he continued squeezing Naruto's throat. The blonde's struggling became weaker and weaker as time passed.

"Water dragon jutsu!" Kakuzu turned his attention to the sound of Tsurugi's voice with an annoyed huff. The masked merc immediately fell into the ground as the water jutsu passed above him. "Damn!"

Kakuzu reappeared behind the Kiri shinobi, causing them all to gasp in shock. The mercenary screamed as he threw one hand forward, gripping Tsurugi's skull. The other hunter-nin jumped back, but then looked up to the sky as their leader was being flailed about like a ragdoll.

"Idiots," Deidara shouted, throwing a massive centipede at Kakuzu. The clay bug scurried forward, causing Kakuzu to snap his head down. The bomb coiled itself around the masked merc's body.

"No," Haku screamed, making a one handed seal. Ice immediately encased itself around Deidara's bomb to prevent the blast from hurting Naruto.

"That won't stop my art! HM!" Deidara made the necessary hand sign for the bomb to go off, but no explosion ever came. "What the…?"

Kakuzu laughed at the inactive bomb, though it would've done nothing to begin with. The masked merc spun Naruto above his head before slamming him down into the ground hard. Naruto cried out, some blood shooting out of his mouth as he coughed. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed in a sadistic glee before he lifted Naruto up again, only to slam him into the ground again.

"Haku," Konan snapped. The ice user and paper kunoichi both shot forward to save Naruto.

"Fools," Kakuzu muttered. As he readied to defend, Kakuzu let out a pained cry as something smashed into his back. Konan and Haku both stopped in shock. Kakuzu continued to scream, his hands slowly loosening their grip on Naruto and Tsurugi. Konan flew upward, catching the unconscious Naruto before he hit the ground. Kakuzu finally dove out of the way, rolling across the ground in a disoriented stumble before looking to the source of the attack.

Gaara slowly walked into the clearing, sand flowing steadily around him. The Jinchuriki had his head down and his arm extended forward at Kakuzu. "Don't…you dare…" Kakuzu groaned as he stood up, preparing himself against the Jinchuriki's next attack. Gaara's head snapped up, his eyes full of malice and killing intent. "HURT NARUTO!"

The sand shot forward in furious streams to match Gaara's rage. Kakuzu chuckled as he sprinted forward.

* * *

Konan set Naruto on the ground as Haku approached them both. The blonde was groaning, drifting in and out of consciousness. Konan scowled, cursing herself for not being a medic. The hunter-nin surrounded the Akatsuki group, causing Haku to look up in shock.

Tsurugi, who was rubbing his throat as he walked up, glared angrily at the Akatsuki shinobi, "Kill them men."

"You've got to be kidding," Konan snapped, her eyes fixated on the nearest ninja.

"We can kill you, and still get away with Deidara. This mercenary's actions won't delay Lord Yagura's campaign."

Konan got up and spun around in a blur, intending to strike the man in the face. However, just as soon as she faced him, Tsurugi's head exploded. Konan's eyes widened in shock as the headless corpse fell to the ground.

"I may be a 'here and now' kind of guy," Deidara's voice began. The hunter-nin turned to the bomber as he approached the group of shinobi. "But I know Kakuzu is the biggest threat to everyone right now. Your captain was too short-sighted to see that Kakuzu would kill every last one of us in an instant. You all aren't so short-sighted are you?" Deidara looked between the hunter-nin who shook their heads in fear. The artist then looked at Konan and Haku, "I may not want to work for you guys, but you'll need my help if you want to take on Kakuzu."

Konan nodded before turning to Haku, "Get Naruto someplace safe and out of the way. Then come back as soon as you can. We'll need your help against him…" Haku nodded in response before picking Naruto up off the ground. The ice user sprung off into the forest as Konan turned to Deidara. "You got a plan?"

"Not really. Never have before and I've walked away…most of the time." Konan rolled her eyes before moving forward.

* * *

Kakuzu darted between the streams of sand, getting closer and closer to the rage driven Gaara. The Jinchuriki's eyes focused on Kakuzu as he appeared right in front of him. Gaara slammed his hands together, screaming as a wall of sand emerged between them.

"SAND TYPHOON!" The wall of sand started spiraling at great speeds. So much so that it created a vortex that started pulling Kakuzu towards it.

The mercenary huffed before throwing his hand out to the nearest tree branch. He latched on and pulled himself out of the wind vortex Gaara's jutsu created. Kakuzu would've guessed if he was caught in that jutsu he would be turned into mince meat. The mercenary shot his other fist forward. Gaara snapped his head around, only to get socked in the jaw with enough jaw to crack his sand armor instantly. Kakuzu's hand came back a bit, grabbing Gaara's head. The mercenary fell from the tree branch and placed his hand on his arm. With a booming scream, Kakuzu's arm flickered with an enormous amount of lightning. The crackling element flew down Kakuzu's arm and towards Gaara. Soon, the redheaded Jinchuriki was surrounded by the element and screamed out in agony.

"Now, now, that pesky armor is taking most of my attack isn't it?" Kakuzu poured more chakra into the attack, causing more cracks to appear across Gaara's body. The screaming became higher and louder.

* * *

The unconscious Naruto suddenly snapped his eyes open, able to hear Gaara's screams of pain. The blonde quickly broke free from Haku's grasp and rushed back to the battlefield. The now dumbfounded Haku stuttered before chasing off after the blonde, "Naruto wait!"

Naruto growled angrily to himself. Gaara was supposed to stay back to act as a defense for the team. He was supposed to stay hidden and offer support like that hunter-nin he crushed. If he got out of cover and was in pain, it was because of Naruto. The blonde clenched his fists, his chakra growing a bit as his hair flickered about suddenly.

"Hold on Gaara…I'm coming!"

* * *

Kakuzu chuckled as his lightning flowed through Gaara's sand armor and into the boy's body. The satisfying screams of pain encouraged Kakuzu to pour another wave of lightning onto the boy. Gaara screamed at the top of his lungs as the massive amount of lightning exploded outward, consuming him in a blinding flash of light.

Konan and Deidara stopped to shield their eyes from the light, as did the hunter-nin. The light cleared, revealing a smoking Gaara in Kakuzu's extended hand. The merc chuckled before flinging Gaara's body away from the soon-to-be battlefield. Konan's eyes widened when she saw Gaara thrown like a ragdoll, rolling across the ground in a smoking heap.

"_A world…of peace. I…would like such a world I think. A world of peace…no war, no strife…a world where everything was fair and nobody was oppressed. Naruto Uzumaki's dream…I will do anything I can to help that dream become a reality. If such a world exists, a world where no more Jinchuriki like myself are needed, then I will help Naruto find it."_

Konan screamed as she rushed forward, eyes deadest on Kakuzu. The mercenary slowly turned around, facing the blue haired woman with a calm demeanor. Konan was determined to make the heartless mercenary pay for hurting both Naruto and Gaara. No matter what he would pay.


	22. Fighting the Immortal Kakuzu

Konan screamed as she hurled forward a paper javelin. Kakuzu turned his head around and jerked to the side, narrowly avoiding the paper weapon. The masked mercenary watched as the blue haired warrior came forward, eyes full of murderous intent. Kakuzu pulled his arm back, ready to attack. Just as Konan closed in, she exploded into hundreds of papers that blocked Kakuzu's sight. The mercenary swatted the papers aside in vain. His green eyes moved to the side, seeing a clay bird coming from behind one of the papers. Kakuzu opened his mouth to scream in rage, but was cut off by a deafening explosion.

The papers reassembled behind the explosion. Konan glared intently at the smoke, waiting for any sign of movement. On the other side of the cloud of smoke, Deidara waited anxiously along with Kiri's hunter-nin.

The smoke cleared, revealing an unharmed Kakuzu standing still. The looks in the mercenary's eyes was casual and disinterested. The mercenary brushed some of the dust off his shoulder before looking back at Konan.

"Rather clever of you to be honest," Kakuzu spoke. "But with childish tactics like that you'll never be able to beat me."

"He's only staying on the defensive," Konan muttered to herself. "There has to be some reason for that. Maybe he's waiting for us to expend our chakra before attacking…"

"Rasengan!" Kakuzu and Konan both snapped their attention to the sound of the new voice. Naruto shot out of the bushes faster than the naked eye could see. Kakuzu turned to try and block with his arms, but the boy was already to close. With a scream of fury, Naruto slammed the Rasengan into Kakuzu's stomach. Combined with the momentum Naruto had going, the Rasengan exploded and send Kakuzu flying.

The mercenary groaned as he smashed through trees and branches. Kakuzu lashed his arms out, grabbing the closest trees to stop himself. The masked immortal hung loosely, grunting at the throbbing pain he felt in his gut. As he cursed the kid, Kakuzu heard something break out of the ground. Turning his head, he saw two more copies of the boy who just attacked him lunging forward again. One wrapped his arms and legs around Kakuzu's body and exploded a second later. Kakuzu cried out in pain, his clothing now set on fire. The second Naruto rushed forward, Rasengan in hand and ready to slam into the mercenary. Kakuzu released the tree and turned to grab the boy by the throat. Naruto gasped, stopping his jutsu to cling desperately to Kakuzu's wrists.

"First the jutsu created by Konoha's Yellow Flash, and now the shadow clone explosion technique. Seems as if this Akatsuki has taught you some things boy." Naruto gasped again, trying to wrench free from Kakuzu's grasp. Finally, the blonde lifted his legs up, wrapping them around Kakuzu's waist. The mercenary looked down in a moment of curiosity. Naruto took that opportunity to break free from Kakuzu's grip and hug his arms around his body tightly. "What the?" Naruto grinned before Kakuzu sensed a massive spike in his chakra. _'HIM TOO!'_ Naruto exploded as well.

Kakuzu stumbled out of the smoke and fire, his own garments burning on his body. The mercenary growled angrily, coughing despite the cover of his mask. Kakuzu clenched his fists angrily, swearing to make that brat suffer. Just then, Kakuzu snapped his head down as he felt something wrap around his legs. Two clay serpents coiled around Kakuzu's legs while four more lunged forward, wrapping around the mercenary's body. Kakuzu got ready to scream again, but was immediately silenced by a cataclysmic explosion.

Deidara stood behind the hunter-nin, hands in his pouches and ready to attack if Kakuzu survived. Konan moved towards Naruto and Haku who were both dragging the unconscious Gaara away from the action.

"I thought I told you to get away," Konan snapped, looking at Naruto.

"I had to come back! I couldn't let you or Gaara handle this by yourselves." Konan scowled before turning towards the area Kakuzu was last seen. Naruto started gently shaking Gaara, "Hey, wake up buddy. Gaara, is anyone in there?" The blonde shook more violently, causing the redhead's noggin to flop back and forth limply. "WAKE UP GAARA!" Naruto swung his arm, smacking Gaara across the cheek with all his might. Still his fellow Jinchuriki didn't respond. "Damn it. What does it take to get him out of this?"

"Hey, focus," Deidara shouted. "He's not dead!" The Akatsuki shinobi turned their attention to the massive amount of flames that were consuming the forest. A silhouetted figure could be seen walking in the flames like a demon from the pits of hell. The fire split apart, revealing Kakuzu with his entire body engulfed in fire. "What the hell is this guy…?"

"Deidara-san, how many times have you fought this man," one hunter-nin asked.

"At least a dozen. I'd swear I killed him a few of those times. Mostly though I just throw a few bombs and run away. I don't know how the hell his techniques work, but I do know that he can control all of the chakra elements."

"Impossible," another hunter-nin shouted. "Even for the most talented of shinobi it could take a lifetime to learn all five elements!"

"You just don't get it do you," Kakuzu questioned as his flaming clothing started peeling away. "They call me Kakuzu the Immortal for a reason…" Deidara, Konan, and the hunter-nin all tensed up as the mercenary walked forward. More pieces of his flaming trench coat started to fall off. "I've survived for almost a hundred years in this world. The first Konoha shinobi I've ever fought was the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju." The shinobi all gasped in shock. Every ninja and every nation knew of the First Hokage. It would be next to impossible not to know who he was.

"T-that can't be," a hunter-nin shouted. "You'd have to be damn near a hundred years old!"

"You hit the nail on the head with that one kid. And since I've survived so long, are you still surprised I know every element style there is?" Deidara and his team of Kiri ANBU took a small step away from Kakuzu. "There's no way any of you can defeat me. Even combined you stand no chance! But I'll let all of you live on one condition." There was a pause. The shinobi all glared at Kakuzu, who seemed to be gleaming behind his mask. "My mission has been handed down from Lord Kazekage, Sasori of the Red Sand. I'm to capture Gaara and bring him back alive. Hand him over and I promise you all will get to live."

"YOU CAN FUCK OFF!" All eyes and heads turned to Naruto. The blonde shot up to his feet, glaring in blind fury at Kakuzu. "Gaara doesn't want to head back to that hellhole of a village to be anybody's weapon! He's not a tool for anyone to use!"

"How cute," Kakuzu chuckled. "A Jinchuriki, not a weapon? Don't be so ridiculous boy. The only purpose for a Jinchuriki is to be a tool. A weapon for its village to use in times of crisis. It's a living representation of a village's power. It's a village's best weapon."

"Shut up…" Naruto's fists balled up tighter than ever before. He gritted his teeth, which slowly started becoming sharper. "Just shut THE FUCK UP!" Naruto's hair became spikier as his chakra started to become heavier, more intense. The boy's natural blue eyes turned red and his pupils slit. "Jinchuriki are _not_ weapons! We aren't monster and we're not tools! We're living people like you, you bastard! We have feelings, we have hopes and dreams just like anyone else! That's why this world is so screwed up because of people like you who only care about power and how much one side has! Power isn't everything!"

This time, Kakuzu actually threw his head back and started laughing at the top of his lungs. It was the first time in their many encounters Deidara heard Kakuzu laugh. He didn't like it one bit.

"Kid, I've seen the worst of what this has to offer. This world runs on two basic elements: money and power. Danzo got to where he was with power. Because he has power, he owns almost half of the world and can do whatever he damn well pleases. He's built up an empire from fear. He's nearly unstoppable and nobody opposes him because he holds all the power."

"Akatsuki is standing against him," Naruto shouted. "And the fact that the Mizukage is trying to recruit Deidara means that the Land of Water is willing to stand against him too!"

"Yes, the fact that a small group of rogues are standing against Danzo is unheard of, at least on this scale. But once he defeats Akatsuki, and makes an example of you all then nobody will be stupid enough to oppose him ever again."

"I will," Naruto screamed. "If I survived, even if it's just me against the world, I'll challenge Danzo! I'll fight him and his damn armies a hundred times over! As long as I'm still breathing I'm not going to stop fighting until this world is free of power-hungry maniacs like you and Danzo!" Gaara began to stir, causing Haku to pry his eyes away from Naruto.

"Just lie still," Haku whispered. "You need more time to recover."

"Well…Akatsuki's vote has been passed. What about you Deidara?"

"Hey, I've got no loyalties to these guys," Deidara replied, stepping out of Kakuzu's way.

"Stupid coward," Naruto seethed.

"Trust me kid, this is the best thing to do right now," the artist told his fellow blonde. "Plus I'm not dying against Kakuzu for any of you."

"Fine, I'LL DO IT MYSELF!" Naruto shot forward before Konan could stop him.

Kakuzu huffed then threw his fist forward. The mercenary's fist traveled right through the boy, or rather what was left. Kakuzu's eyes widened in shock at the boy's newfound speed. A powerful force hit Kakuzu in the back of the neck, smashing him hard into the ground. The mercenary skidded forward through the ground, groaning the entire way until he came to a stop. Naruto vanished in a blur.

Kakuzu slowly got off the ground, shaking his head clear before jumping back. Naruto smashed a crater into the ground as the mercenary skidded to a halt. "Fast little pup aren't you?" Naruto growled, turning his attention to Kakuzu. "But it seems you're all bark and no bite."

"SHUT UP!" Naruto's chakra became a swirling red mass around him. Gusts of wind flew out from the boy's position. Deidara and the hunter-nin looked on in shock at the boy's sheer amount of power. "I'm getting sick and tired of you running your mouth! I swear I'm going to sew it shut for you!" Haku started trembling at the uneasy feeling from Naruto's power. Konan meanwhile, scowled as she shielded her eyes from the wind.

"Naruto, calm down," Konan shouted. "The Kyuubi's chakra is slipping!" Haku gasped, looking up at his senior.

"T-the Kyuubi's chakra," the ice user repeated with a shaking tone.

"NO! He hurt Gaara and now he wants to take him away from us!" Kakuzu chuckled, finding the young boy's determination amusing. "Well, he'll have to do it over my cold dead BODY!" Naruto's chakra exploded again, the gusts of wind becoming more intense. The ground started shaking, surprising everyone but Kakuzu and Konan even more.

"So you're fighting me alone," Kakuzu mused. The mercenary's eyes widened as his back began to bulge out. The mercenary groaned, almost sounding pained before looking up at Naruto with a devious glint in his eyes. "I do believe I've been underestimated…" Kakuzu screamed in pain as four figures exploded out of his back. Every single shinobi gasped in confusion as they watched five black things flying through the air. The creatures landed on either side of Kakuzu who chuckled lowly. Each creature wore a strange animal-like mask for a face. The mercenary took in a deep breath before looking up with a smile. "You ready boy?"

"Wh-what type of jutsu is this," a shaking hunter-nin asked.

"I…I don't know," Deidara replied. "I've never seen anything like this. What the hell is going on…?"

Naruto glared intensely at Kakuzu, the ground still shaking from their massive chakra levels trying to overpower the other. "The power of the Kyuubi huh…let's just see where this goes shall we?"

"Bring it on!" Naruto shot forward in a blinding flash. Kakuzu's five creatures scattered while the man himself leapt back as Naruto wiped his hand, creating a powerful shockwave that tore a tree apart from nearly twenty yards away.

Kakuzu landed on the ground, throwing his arms as several thick threads exploded out of his body. He saw the dust kick up as Naruto charged him. One of the creatures that came from Kakuzu's body flew overhead, shooting a concentrated beam of lightning from its mouth. Naruto's eyes flickered as he noticed this and quickly shot to the side. Kakuzu snickered as he thrusted his fist into the ground.

"Water style: exploding water colliding wave!" Cracks formed out of the ground with water quickly erupting out of them. Soon, the ground exploded as water shot out.

Naruto attempted to slide across the ground, but slipped and fell on his side. Another of Kakuzu's mysterious creatures flew over Naruto and started shooting a series of fireballs from its mouth. Naruto gasped then started rolling across the ground to avoid getting hit.

"Hold on Naruto!" Haku ran up, forming hand signs before slamming his foot on the nearest source of water.

Naruto was stopped when a wall of ice appeared and wrapped around him to shield the boy from the barrage of fireballs. The creature that spat lightning appeared and fired its beam of concentrated lightning at Naruto's ice shielding. The two creatures then charged their attacks before launching a powerful blast of combined lightning and fire. The jutsu hit, creating a massive explosion on impact. The shield was cracked, but not entirely broken. Kakuzu shot into the air, spinning around widely before pulling his fist back. As he descended, the mercenary screamed in fury before slamming his fist through the weakened ice shield. Kakuzu felt his hand punch through the ground, but was confused as to where the boy went.

Suddenly, something grabbed Kakuzu's arm, causing him to gasp in shock. Naruto's fist exploded through the other end of the ice shield, slamming into Kakuzu's face. The sheer force of the impact created a shockwave that send Kakuzu sailing high into the air, spinning around like a plastic toy.

Naruto looked up, seeing the two creatures of fire and lightning preparing another attack. Just before they began to fire, Haku jumped on the lightning creature's back, stabbing it with three needles, one between each of his fingers. The fire monster was also distracted by a sudden swarm of papers that cut it over various places.

Naruto smiled in appreciated for the backup. As the blonde looked down, another one of the creatures appeared in front of him, and punched the boy with all its might. Naruto's stomach folded around the creature's fist as blood flew out of his mouth. The blonde went flying backwards, bouncing off the ground before smashing into a tree.

"Damn it, let's just get out of here," Deidara said, turning to the hunter-nin. "Things are getting way out of hand here!"

"I-I agree," a hunter-nin sputtered. "We just came to recruit Deidara and that's what we've done. Mission accomplished!" As the group turned to run, the fourth creature cut them off.

"Get out of our damn way!" Deidara reached back into his pouch, ready to attack before he heard a thunderous sound behind them. The artist and his employers turned around, seeing Kakuzu standing in the middle of a new crater made no doubt when he landed.

"Now, now Deidara…you can't be thinking of leaving just yet can you?"

"Damn it Kakuzu," the artist murmured. The masked mercenary chuckled as he pulled his arm back, ready to attack. Just before he could strike, Kakuzu was hit in the chest with a massive amount of sand. Deidara and the hunter-nin turned around, seeing Gaara propped up on one knee and one of his arms fully extended with his other hand resting on the ground. The Jinchuriki was still very injured, and Deidara could tell it took every ounce of his strength to stay up. "What the…why the hell would you-,"

"Run," Gaara breathed. The Jinchuriki screamed as he moved his hand towards Kakuzu's strange creature. The monster flew up, avoiding the sand as it flew overhead. "If…you're going to get away…do it now…hurry…"

The creature launched a blast of wind towards Gaara. The Jinchuriki threw his arms up above his head, creating a bubble of sand around himself. The wind hit the sand, creating a massive, swirling dome that engulfed everything nearby. Deidara and the hunter-nin all covered their faces, grunting as they struggled to stand. Each of them were thrown off their feet and sent flying back.

The swirling wind vortex stopped, revealing Gaara's sand bubble had been worn down by the jutsu. The redhead even took some damage himself from that attack.

Kakuzu huffed, having recovered quickly from Gaara's weak attack. "Stubborn pest aren't you?"

Naruto looked over, seeing Gaara lying on the ground again from Kakuzu's attack. "G…Gaara…no…" The blonde struggled to get up, unaware of the creature that attacked him earlier approaching him. Naruto looked over at Kakuzu, watching as he started to walk towards Gaara. "Stay…stay away from him you bastard!"

"You're still alive," Kakuzu asked calmly, turning his head to Naruto as he continued towards the other Jinchuriki. "You Jinchuriki are all a stubborn lot aren't you?"

"Leave…him…ALONE!" Naruto rolled just as the creature from earlier tried to punch him on the ground. The blonde grabbed the creature's arm, the Kyuubi's chakra flowing around him again. Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs as he hurled the creature over his shoulder and towards Kakuzu.

The mercenary continued forward, ignoring Naruto's screaming. Kakuzu shouted and stumbled forward as his creature smacked into his back. However this didn't do much, as the creature was quickly assimilated back into his body. The mercenary chuckled before turning around, facing Naruto.

"Now you're starting to bug me."

"Still think I've got no bite," Naruto shouted.

"Prove me wrong." Naruto's fury grew before darting forward.

The creatures that Konan and Haku were fighting against suddenly flew towards their master. The blue haired woman turned her head, seeing Naruto rushing Kakuzu. "Naruto! Each of those creatures uses only one type of jutsu!" One of the creatures launched a few fireballs in Naruto's path, causing the Jinchuriki to jump back. Konan groaned, smacking her forehead in grief. "Use you're head you idiot! Remember your training!"

"Right," Naruto whispered to himself. "Those two are fire and lightning obviously." Naruto jumped as the third creature attempted to swipe at him from behind. "And that one is wind! So the other one I threw at this guy was earth. Okay, I can do this!"

'_Analyze all you want, it won't help you. The only chance you stand would be to eliminate my lightning heart with wind. But I'm not giving you that chance.'_

Kakuzu's lightning 'heart' flew back to its master and fused back with the mercenary. Naruto scowled, looking to the other two floating creatures. "Fire and wind," the boy whispered.

"Which when combined creates a devastating result," Kakuzu finished. "You're done for boy." Just as Kakuzu got ready to attack, he grunted lightly. Looking down, he saw a javelin jutting out of his chest, fresh blood dripping of the end of it. "Son of a…bitch…"

"You let your guard down," Konan whispered from behind. "You never leave an opening like that for your opponents." Kakuzu chuckled lowly before grabbing the javelin sticking out of the front of his chest.

"Don't lecture me child. You have no comprehension of my powers…" Kakuzu gripped Konan's weapon tightly, keeping her from moving it anywhere. The paper user looked skeptically at Kakuzu before she was suddenly pulled back just as a fireball almost roasted her. "Lucky woman," the mercenary whispered. He grunted and groaned as he pulled Konan's weapon out of his chest. "Be grateful you brought that Yuki Clan pest with you."

Haku stepped out of one of his ice mirrors and sat Konan down on her feet. The paper master scowled, looking at the hole in Kakuzu's body. "It doesn't make sense. I know I stabbed him right through his heart. There's no way I could've missed."

"Again, you have mo comprehension of my abilities. Just give me the Jinchuriki, and you can all go home."

"No chance," Naruto screamed.

"You're starting to piss me off too Kakuzu," Deidara exclaimed. Kakuzu turned his head to his merc rival, accompanied by his hunter-nin allies. "I'm not hindering you in anyway and yet you're trying to kill me."

Kakuzu's eyes widened as he groaned again. The mercenary's back started writhing wildly before one of the creatures shot out from his back. The monster lied on the ground, shaking around in pain and whining in an inhuman tone. The creature finally lied motionless.

"Is that thing…dead," Haku whispered.

"Maybe…wait. It…it couldn't be." Haku looked up at his senior curiously. Konan's face was blank, but her mind was working furiously to realize something.

"I could take you all out at once. In fact, I think I shall." Kakuzu leapt up high into the air with his fire and wind creatures following him. "This is one of my stronger jutsus! You should be honored that I'm using this, but I've grown tired of this little game!" The two creatures flew around Kakuzu, who remained aloft using the threads from the lightning monster. The fire and wind creatures opened their mouths, charging up their attacks.

"Oh this can't end well," Deidara muttered.

"Everyone take cover," Konan shouted.

Kakuzu screamed, throwing his arms out as his two hearts unleashed their two elements into each other. A massive wave of fire that could easily consume the forest rushed down upon the shinobi.

"Oh damn it," Deidara screamed.

Haku quickly formed his hand seals as quickly as he could, creating a dome around himself and Konan. "Wait, what about Naruto!" Haku looked over to the blonde, seeing him running for Gaara. "The idiot! Naruto hurry up!"

The blonde scooped up his fellow Jinchuriki as quickly as he could and looked up. There was no chance he could get back to Haku in time. To his shock, someone grabbed the back of his shirt and jerked him to the side. Naruto looked over, seeing Deidara dragging him back to Haku.

"They're not going to make it," Haku murmured.

"MOVE!"

"We're trying bitch!" Deidara looked over, seeing the four remaining hunter-nin trying water jutsus to try and extinguish the flames. "Idiots…" Deidara stopped then formed two hand signs before slamming his palm onto the ground. A hole opened up which Deidara threw the two Jinchuriki into before jumping in himself. The artist quickly closed the hole above before looking to the two Jinchuriki. "Why I bother saving you two is beyond me."

Naruto panted heavily, holding an unconscious Gaara in his arms. The Jinchuriki looked up at his fellow blonde and smiled, despite the fact he couldn't see it, "Thank you though…" Deidara snorted before looking upward.

Haku and Konan braced themselves for the overwhelming wave of fire coming down on them. The flames engulfed the entire surrounding area, incinerating the hunter-nin in seconds. Haku groaned, surprised by the amount of heat and the shockwave it produced. The ground shook violently, causing Konan to stumble a bit. Haku however had to keep his balance, lest his jutsu fail.

"Haku look…" The ice user opened his eyes, watching as the flames started burning the ground itself. "What type of jutsu is that?" Haku's eyes widened and his jaw fell in shock.

Deidara and Naruto both felt the heat intensifying. "Damn it, I was worried about this…"

"I have an idea," Naruto muttered. Deidara looked over in the blonde's direction, confused as to why Naruto sounded so surprised by his own suggestion. "It's crazy and it'll have to be timed just right…" Deidara grunted, as the flames started coming through the ground. The artist softened the ground beneath them, falling further into the earth.

"At this point I'm willing to try anything!"

"I can help too," a weak voice added. Naruto turned to Gaara's direction, feeling his partner moving. "I have to pull my own weight Naruto…"

"O-okay buddy. You think you could defend Deidara while he rushes Kakuzu?"

"Wait—the fuck?"

Naruto grinned, turning towards Deidara, "You wanna see true art? Then listen up."

* * *

Kakuzu continued to float high above the air, watching as his jutsu's flames started to become weaker. _'They can't hide for long…'_ The mercenary turned his eyes to Konan and Haku who were still sitting put. _'I wonder if they're planning to attack?'_

The ground suddenly broke out, causing Kakuzu to snap his eyes back to his flames. Deidara flew out of the fire like a bat out of hell, riding on top of a clay owl as he flew straight towards Kakuzu. The mercenary chuckled before having his fire heart launch a few fireballs Deidara's way. Suddenly, several streams of sand flew outward, shielding Deidara from the fire.

"What the," Kakuzu muttered. "Damn Jinchuriki!" Kakuzu's fire and wind hearts charged up their attacks again.

"Damn," Konan murmured. "How long can you hold this up Haku?"

"My chakra is running low…if he launches that attack, there's no promise that this will hold."

"Open it then," Konan snapped. "That's an order." Haku nodded, releasing his jutsu. Konan shot forward, paper wings forming on her back as she moved as quickly as she could towards Kakuzu.

Gaara's sand continued to fly around Deidara in case he needed defense, "This had better work kid, hm." Deidara reached into his pouches and quickly formed two four winged birds. He flung his sculptures forward, their wings flapping wildly as they headed towards Deidara.

"Idiot," Kakuzu shouted. The mercenary's lightning heart came out of his back, arching over his head before firing a beam of lightning that pierced the bombs. Deidara's clay birds were rendered motionless and inactive. "Now, prepare to die!"

"NO!" Konan formed four paper javelins and shot them forward along with a paper tornado.

Kakuzu's lightning beam swept across, cutting through all of Konan's attack and would've done the same to the kunoichi herself had she not released into a storm of papers. Deidara formed his smallest, quickest bombs and threw them at Kakuzu as a last ditch effort. Kakuzu's lightning beam cut through the bombs, causing them to explode before they even touched his other hearts.

The wind and fire attacks were ready to launch, much to Konan and Deidara's dismay. "Awe shit," the artist muttered.

"DIE!"

Gaara screamed, launching all of the sand he could control with his remaining chakra up to shield Konan and Deidara, "Sky sand protective wall!" The sand expanded over the two flyers. Gaara winced, trying to keep the thinly spread sand as hard as possible with his chakra.

"I'm here Gaara!" Said Jinchuriki turned his head to the side, seeing Haku standing next to him. The ice user quickly made a series of hand signs, sending any surrounding water up to form a thin layer of ice behind Gaara's sand wall. Haku grunted, his body failing due to the over use of chakra. "My jutsu is pretty weak, but I'll help any way I can!"

"Thank you," Gaara groaned, also struggling to keep his jutsu as strong as possible.

Deidara and Konan flew down to the ground as quickly as they could, knowing Gaara and Haku's defenses couldn't last long with how little chakra they both had. Kakuzu's wave of fire hit the sand, bearing down hard on it as well as the ice wall. Both Haku and Gaara grunted as they tried to concentrate harder. Finally, the fire broke through both defenses, flickering wildly in the sky as if it were upset.

"Damn it," Deidara shouted, looking back over his shoulder. "We're going to die!"

"Quit whining," Konan snapped.

Gaara and Haku, with the little chakra they had left quickly started to form a barrier of sand and ice. The two flying shinobi swooped down, landing on the ground. Konan threw her arms up, providing a weak shielding of paper to help her fellow Akatsuki shinobi. Deidara looked at the rogues before turning his head upward, watching as the fire was coming closer.

The barrier of sand, ice, and paper closed, providing the only protection for four shinobi against a massive sheet of fire. The flames hit, producing a much more cataclysmic affect than last time. The barrier didn't hold long against the fire as it shattered, burned, and disintegrated in the flames. The fire spread out in a wider range, consuming even more of the forest.

From above, Kakuzu watched as the fire soon moved outward from the point of impact before descending towards the ground. What was once a forest covered in a thin layer of frost was now reduced to a scorching wasteland. The trees were burning, cracking at the immense heat while the ground was nothing more than blackened ash. Kakuzu planted his feet on the ground, looking out in front of him. His four opponents were scattered apart, all lying on the ground with fire surrounding them. Gaara and Haku lied on their fronts and their cloaks were almost completely singed off. Konan was on her back, eyes closed, looking almost peaceful with her cloak's front hanging open. The only conscious one was Deidara, who was lying on his stomach, trying to force his body to get up.

"How pitiful Deidara," Kakuzu murmured. The artist looked up, gasping briefly as he choked on some of his own blood before hawking it up. "Looks like your art failed this time didn't it?" Just then, the Akatsuki shinobi slowly started coming too. "Oh and look; the peanut gallery will be able to watch as they all die."

"Damn it," Deidara muttered for the thousandth time today.

"I swear I'm going to beat the living daylights out of Naruto if I die," Konan muttered.

"Speaking of which…" Kakuzu's hand shot down, tearing through the ground next to him before shooting out from behind, gripping Naruto by the throat. "And had you thought I forgot about you boy?" Kakuzu's arm broke up through the ground before moving Naruto in front of him so the immortal could glare at the boy with his own eyes. "Looks like you're at the end of your rope eh? Whatever you were planning to do you failed. Now, you and your friends, will die."

"Oh yeah," Naruto gasped. The blonde threw his arms and legs out, wrapping them around Kakuzu's upper body. The mercenary looked quizzically at the boy before he looked down, seeing two more blondes grabbing his legs.

"What the?" Kakuzu looked up, seeing the Naruto in front of him grinning triumphantly. The mercenary's eyes moved behind the clone that gripped him, seeing a fourth Naruto running at him with a dangerous looking, and sounding, jutsu. _'That looks dangerous…'_

Kakuzu got ready to throw the Naruto that gripped him to deal with the real one, but to his surprise, he exploded. Kakuzu screamed in pain, fire and smoke covering his sight. The other two Naruto's moved out of the ground, grabbing either side of Kakuzu before exploding as well. The other two explosions disoriented Kakuzu further. As he looked up, the mercenary realized there was nothing he could do at this point to defend himself.

"Wind style: Rasenshuriken!"

Naruto thrusted his newest jutsu into Kakuzu's chest, landing a direct hit. Much to Kakuzu's surprise, the jutsu had more power than he could've imagined. The ball of chakra alone dug into his stomach. Naruto held the jutsu just a bit longer, allowing his chakra to dig in just a little longer before he released control of it. The jutsu sent Kakuzu flying back, smashing through anything in his path while the wind blades seemed to propel him further away. The jutsu then exploded, creating a massive wind sphere that consumed Kakuzu and a large section of the forest.

Inside the sphere, Kakuzu couldn't move an inch as his body was being pierced, torn, and ripped apart. The immortal screamed in agony, never feeling this much pain in his very long life.

The sphere spun around, tearing anything and everything inside to shreds before exploding outward. The force of the explosion blew the frost off of the untouched trees, and extinguished all the flames set by Kakuzu's jutsu. Naruto shielded his face before being blown back by the force of his own attack. The others on the ground simply turned their heads while Naruto flew right over them.

The after affects of the jutsu wore off. Konan slowly got up, wiping some of the dirt that was blown on her face off. Haku groaned, pushing himself up with his shaking arms before sitting up on his knees. Gaara could only move his head, watching the wind blowing fiercely around the area the Rasenshuriken exploded. Deidara sat up on his hands and knees, in complete and utter awe at what he just witnessed.

Konan propped her arm up on her knee before looking back at Naruto, who was face down in the dirt. "I honestly can't believe that kid sometimes," the paper user murmured to herself. "Instead of attacking Kakuzu from behind he attacked from directly in front. For a seasoned veteran like Kakuzu, attacking from behind is just as obvious as attacking head on. He used his own combat experience against him."

Haku helped Gaara to sit up, both of them turning to Naruto with smiles on their faces. They too were also greatly impressed with Naruto. Deidara turned around onto his rear, looking back at Naruto as his head moved up to them all. The blonde simply grinned and started laughing before moving his arm up to raise his thumb up. Konan chuckled at the boy's cocky attitude. Haku laughed while Gaara's smile widened. Konan got up and walked towards Naruto, holding her bleeding right arm.

The blonde put his hand under his body and pushed himself up, but immediately groaned and fell down again. Concerned, Konan moved forward quickly and knelt down next to Naruto. "Are you okay?"

"M-my hand…" Konan grabbed Naruto's arm and pulled it out in the open. To her shock, the boy's arm was covered in a few cuts and scrapes, almost as if the jutsu hurt him too.

"Don't move," Konan whispered, holding her hand over Naruto's. Paper formed out of Konan's arm and wrapped itself around Naruto's hand. Konan released Naruto's arm once her makeshift cast was complete. "That was an impressive plan…and a risky one Naruto."

"I know," the boy groaned as he sat up. "But it worked right?" Konan smiled at the boy's normal goofy grin before ruffling his hair. Naruto groaned playfully, pulling himself away from Konan's hand.

Haku walked up to his fellow Akatsuki, and held up Gaara against his side. "That was a very impressive jutsu Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck with his good hand, "Thanks Haku. But I wouldn't have been able to use it if it wasn't for Gaara and Deidara."

"It was no trouble Naruto," Gaara softly replied. "He was after me. It was because of me that you all were put in danger. I had to help."

"Don't beat yourself up Gaara," Konan said. "It's over now anyway." Naruto nodded, grinning widely at his friends. The Akatsuki shinobi turned their heads around once they heard a brief cry. Deidara was trying to get up on his feet, but was too beaten to do so.

Naruto immediately got to his feet and approached the artist. Konan, Haku, and Gaara all watched as Naruto approached his fellow blonde. Naruto knelt down next to Deidara, catching the artist's attention.

"Thanks for your help," Naruto said with a smile.

"Thanks for getting rid of Kakuzu," Deidara groaned. The artist tried pushing himself up again, only to fall flat on his face. Naruto lifted Deidara up by his arm, propping him against his side. Naruto grunted, struggling to keep balance while supporting the taller man. "I don't need your help!"

"I needed yours a minute ago," Naruto replied. "This is just me returning the favor." Deidara huffed, blushing faintly at the fact he was being carried by a thirteen year old boy. "I know you don't find any artistic value in joining Akatsuki…but we could really use your help." Deidara's eyes moved towards Naruto, glaring softly at the boy. "I wanted to come on this mission because I knew you were talented and I knew you could help our organization."

"Talented hm?" Naruto chuckled, nodding as he looked forward, smiling at his friends. Deidara followed Naruto's gaze before huffing. "You really care about them huh?"

"They're my friends. They're the most important people in the world to me." Naruto laughed as a realization came into his head. "I guess you could say I value them just as much as you value your art." Deidara's eyes snapped to the boy carrying him. "They're precious to me, and I'd do anything to keep them safe, to keep them from harm. Just like you'd do anything to make sure that your art is renowned worldwide." The artist's eyes narrowed at Naruto. "I admire your talents, and so do a lot of higher-ups in the Akatsuki. The founders took a particular interest in you because of your art. And I have no doubt that others in Akatsuki will admire your talents once they see what you can do. Who knows, maybe you'll bring a lot of fame and attention to Akatsuki with your art."

Deidara huffed, turning his head away as he closed his eyes and smirked. "We'll fix you up from this fight, but if you still want to join Kirigakure…we can't stop you I guess."

"Kid…" Naruto looked at his senior blonde, who was still smiling with his eyes closed. Deidara finally reopened his eyes and looked ahead at the other Akatsuki members. "You spit on my name as an artist." Naruto's expression flashed to complete confusion. "You just attack randomly, hoping that the next one will work. Your plans are unpredictable and incomprehensible. But as much as I hate to say it…" Deidara paused for a moment, getting a look of curiosity from Naruto. "That jutsu you just used…in its own way it could be considered art. Which would make you an artist." Naruto gapped in awe, his face paling and falling down in shock. "I need to keep an eye on you to see how you progress so that I can make sure my art surpasses yours, HM! After all, I'm not going to let some brat beat me at my own game without trying!"

"So…you're joining Akatsuki?"

"That's what I just said knucklehead! Listen for once!" Naruto grinned, nodding to Deidara before stopping in front of the others. "I'm joining Akatsuki," Deidara said, looking at Konan. "And not just because my contractors are dead."

"On behalf of Akatsuki, we appreciate your joining us," Konan said with a smile. Her eyes turned to Naruto, knowing that somehow the boy had swayed Deidara's heart, just as he did Gaara before him. "We should leave before anybody shows up."

"Limp away boss lady," Deidara sarcastically said. Konan rolled her eyes and took the lead while Haku carried Gaara and Naruto carried Deidara behind her.

* * *

In the distance, at the bottom of a smoking crater, Kakuzu's corpse lied, bleeding out of countless cuts all over his body and his mask was reduced to shreds. A shadow loomed over the dead mercenary. An orange mask looked down at the body with a burning Sharingan behind it.

"How unfortunate…" Madara kicked Kakuzu lightly with his foot. "He's dead." Just then, the wind and fire hearts that belonged to Kakuzu flew down and reassembled with their master. Kakuzu's eyes widened with life before coughing furiously, blooding flying out of his mouth every second. "So how's your mission going?" Kakuzu glared up at Madara. The mercenary pushed himself up, only for his arms to give out in a second. Kakuzu fell on his face, coughing up a fit again. "That jutsu that Naruto Uzumaki used…it took two of your lives."

"I…know that," Kakuzu groaned.

"You held back just because you underestimated the boy," Madara stated.

"I KNOW THAT! Next time I swear I'll kill him!"

"No. Naruto is vital to my plans. Do not kill him. I'll take you back to my labs to repair your body. I'll have Zetsu see what we can do about replacing your hearts." Madara placed his hand on the back of Kakuzu's head. A vortex opened up in his mask, sucking them both into the wormhole.

**

* * *

So, this was oh-so-much fun to write. And Naruto got to use his Jesus-no-jutsu again, and this time on Deidara. Silly artists always having to be so competitive. The next chapter will be more Sakura centric, with a few snippets with Naruto as he returns to the base, and we'll also see what Jiraiya's team is up to since they left. Oh, but I do start college Wednesday, so I have no idea how this will fuck with my irregular updating. Just thought I'd let you know so you won't think I abandoned you all. I will never abandon this story…ya know, until it's over at least lol.**

**Hope you enjoyed all the death fighting action. Next chapter will be a bit slower in comparison since there isn't action the entire time.**


	23. Confronting Onoki of Both Scales

Sakura followed Kakashi, Temari, and Sasuke into the training yards of Iwagakure. The Sand Siblings and their sensei arrived a day after the Konoha shinobi arrived. The two groups ran routine inspections all around the village, trying to ensure that Iwa wasn't planning on betraying either Danzo or Sasori. So far nobody in the village seemed to be even thinking the word 'betrayal' much rather carry it out.

"What are we supposed to find around here," Temari questioned as she kicked a tiny pebble away. "This training field is wide open, just like every other village's. There's nothing out here that would help us in our investigation."

"You never know just what you might find," Sasuke replied calmly. "Kakashi sensei knows Iwa shinobi better than anybody else, including your sensei. So if he sees reason to investigate this area, then I wouldn't complain."

"A lesson on how to suck up from the Hokage's little baby," Temari muttered bitterly. Sasuke scowled as he snapped his head towards the Suna kunoichi.

"Calm down Sasuke," Kakashi snapped softly. The Uchiha survivor huffed before turning his head away from Temari. "We can't take the risk of Onoki having made deals with Akatsuki. He's famous for recruiting rogue shinobi to give him an edge before in battles."

"You really think Onoki would've asked help from the Akatsuki," Sakura asked worriedly.

"Maybe before they became exclusive perhaps. I don't that Onoki would even consider working with Akatsuki after what happened at the Chunin Exams."

"LOOK OUT BELOW!" The ninjas looked up and immediately scattered. Up from above, Kurotsuchi riding on the back of Akatsuchi came crashing down into the ground, forming a massive crater in the ground. The Iwa kunoichi quickly leapt out of the hole in the ground and dusted her dress off. "That was fun. What're you guys up to? Training?"

"We're still just looking around," Sasuke replied, rather annoyed with the outgoing young woman.

"Awe that sucks. You guys need to learn to relax. All work and no play ya know?" Kurotsuchi looked over, seeing Sakura getting up on her feet. "Oh hey, Little Mountain Smasher! I didn't see you before."

"I'm kinda hard to miss," Sakura replied as she pointed to her pink hair. Kurotsuchi snickered, rubbing the back of her head. Sakura couldn't help but smile at her newfound friend's attitude.

"Hey Kakashi sensei," Kurotsuchi asked turning to the Jonin just as he rolled his eyes. He hated when the Iwa kunoichi called him that. "Do you mind if I steal Sakura away from this boring ass mission of yours?"

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't," Kakashi replied.

"GREAT!" Kurotsuchi grabbed Sakura's arm and bolted towards the village. "I'll have her back at the hotel before nightfall!"

"I'm sorry Kakashi sensei," Sakura shouted. The masked Jonin simply pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed heavily. Sakura pried her arm free from Kurotsuchi's grasp and continued to run along side her fellow kunoichi. "Why did you take me away from my mission?"

"You're complaining," Kurotsuchi questioned. Sakura laughed before looking back over her shoulder.

"Not one bit." The two kunoichi bounced back and forth as they made their way across the training fields. "So what exactly are we doing today? Last time you and I were together we didn't exactly have a whole lot of fun."

"Just cause Zaku got thrown through a window in a bar fight I started doesn't mean that a good time wasn't had by everyone else."

"How many old men tried flirting with me," Sakura questioned, narrowing her eyes at her foreign friend. Kurotsuchi scratched her blushing cheek, giggling in embarrassment. "I almost wish my father's reputation would've made these people hate me after yesterday."

"Hey, be happy your daddy isn't Minato Namikaze. I'm pretty sure that those guys would've either killed you, or they wouldn't have even bothered with the flirting." Sakura shuddered at the mere suggestion. Kurotsuchi chuckled, grinning at her pink haired companion before looking back ahead. "You Konoha shinobi make quite the reputation for yourselves."

"So who's more famous: my father or the Yellow Flash?"

"According to my father, who encountered both of those two in battle, Minato Namikaze was the best shinobi he had ever seen. He could've beaten any shinobi, your father, my grandpa, blindfolded."

"So my father just got lucky by taking out that Mammoth Squad or whatever?"

"Pretty much. I mean hell, if a Genin did what your father did I'm sure they'd be famous too. No offence, my dad says your dad was still a hell of a shinobi." Sakura shrugged and smiled.

"Hey, my dad kicked half of your village's ass." Kurotsuchi snapped her head around, glaring at Sakura who only chuckled in response. "I'm only teasing you." The Iwa kunoichi's glare switched to a grin before she and Sakura started laughing together.

* * *

Konan led the group of four through the forest. Their wounds from battling Kakuzu were getting better, so nobody had to be carried by anyone else. Naruto however seemed to heal the fastest, despite taking a savage beating from the mercenary himself. The blonde had his hand behind his head, walking behind Konan. Ever since they started heading back to the hideout, Haku and Gaara had been chatting the entire way back. Naruto was happy that Gaara made a new friend, but the Jinchuriki couldn't help but feel a bit jealous. His only company was an air-head artist who kept muttering to himself on new ways he could try and beat Naruto's Rasenshuriken.

"Hey Konan, how much longer until we're back home? I'm beat and I could go for a bowl of ramen."

"We're a few hours away still," Konan replied, looking over her shoulder at Naruto. "We can't rush it Naruto. Our bodies still need to take a break after our fight. Even you."

"But all my wounds are healed up Konan-chan," Naruto snapped back.

"With all the training you went through with little to no breaks, combined with fighting Kakuzu, your body needs to rest. Your wounds may be healed, but your muscles were still overworked. The Kyuubi's chakra can't fix that and you know it." Naruto huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and pouted. Konan rolled her eyes, not wanting to deal with Naruto's attitude. _'You think he'd be a little more grateful for me helping him to use that stupid jutsu.'_

"Say Naruto my man," Deidara said. The Jinchuriki turned his attention to his fellow blonde who cupped his hand over his chin. "You're a Jinchuriki, the Kyuubi's host right?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Naruto's tone hinted hostility, something which Konan noted. The last thing she wanted now was for him to ruin the hard-headed rogue's allegiance to Akatsuki.

"No reason, just making sure. I've got an idea for a new piece of art in mind. You'll have to tell me what you think of it once I complete it my man." Naruto's antagonistic attitude seemed to fade away. Was Deidara being friendly to him? "Konan-san, if you don't mind I could go scout on ahead if you'd like. I wouldn't have to rush ahead or anything, just pop out one of my works and fly on up to the sky."

"That won't be necessary Deidara, but thank you. Akatsuki has scouts that patrol the area less than a mile up ahead. That way we ensure that nobody stumbles upon our base by accident. We'll be safe once we enter our territory."

"Alright, just trying to help," Deidara replied casually. Naruto studied the artist for a moment. He honestly couldn't understand the man. One minute he wanted nothing to do with them due to a lack of art or something. Now he was trying to be friendly to Naruto and offering to help out the group?

'_Confusing man,'_ Naruto thought to himself. Naruto looked up at the sky, thinking quietly to himself.

"NARUTO!" The blonde Jinchuriki looked to his side, only to be tackled to the ground a split second later. The rest of the Akatsuki shinobi looked down, seeing Naruto wrestling with Kiba. "You son of a bitch, what the hell took you so long?"

"Get off me Kiba!" Said Inuzuka laughed as he threw a few playful punches at Naruto who attempted to retaliate.

Konan turned her head, hearing someone approaching. Tenten and Neji came through the bushes, both panting lightly as they glared at Kiba. "Forgive us Lady Konan," Neji sighed. "We were scouting the border when he caught scent of you all and ran to greet you."

"Can't teach an old dog new tricks I suppose," Tenten spitefully exclaimed, her hands on her hips in aggravation.

"Excuse me for having friends," Kiba sniped, having Naruto in a head lock. The blonde screamed as he finally squeezed out before putting his brunette friend in a full-nelson.

"Is this normal," Deidara asked Konan.

"Pretty standard with these two," the blue haired senior replied. "You two, break it up now!" Naruto released Kiba, grumbling angrily at his friend. The two spiky haired boys stood apart from each other, glaring back at one another. "You three continue your scouting and report back to base. I've got to tell Yahiko and the others that we have a new member of Akatsuki."

"You're Deidara-san correct," Neji asked.

"That's me," the artist replied.

"Neji Hyuga." The boy extended his arm, holding out his hand. Deidara smirked then grasped Neji's hand. The brunettes' eyes widened for a moment before he jumped back, wrenching his hand free with a twisted look of horror on his face. Deidara started laughing, showing his palm to Neji and revealed a hand with teeth and a tongue.

"Oh man I love doing that," Deidara chuckled. "Never gets old!" Neji scowled before composing himself. Off to the side, Tenten and Kiba were both chuckling at their friend's embarrassment.

"I like this guy already. The name's Kiba Inuzuka." Deidara's eye widened a bit with surprise before turning to the young boy.

"Well, I've never met a living Inuzuka before. You the last of your clan hm?"

"Me and my sister are," Kiba answered, his voice softening a bit. "It's not something I like to talk about alright buddy."

"My mistake," Deidara replied, holding his hand up to say no more. "Anyway, we should be heading to the base right Konan-san?"

"Right." The blue haired woman turned to the three scouts and pointed at them, "You make sure to finish your patrols before you come back got it?"

"Yes ma'am," the three Genin replied. Konan nodded before her and her team walked further into the forest.

* * *

Sakura and Kurotsuchi walked through the village, the latter showing her friend the best places to shop. Sakura was a bit surprised that such a tomboy was actually quite the fashion expert. She found a few kimonos and other dresses that she absolutely loved. "Remind me to bring my uncle to this village to come shopping," Sakura joked as she and Kurotsuchi walked out of their fourth store.

"Hell I could buy you anything you want. My grandpa is the Tsuchikage ya know. I get discounts on just about everything in the village."

"I don't want you spending your money on me. Uncle Higure always lectures me not to spend money that isn't mine."

"But that's the _best_ kind of money! If you found a hundred Ryo on the ground, you seriously wouldn't take it and spend it on something you wanted?" Sakura grinned, holding her hands behind her back. "See! Let me buy you something. At least one thing."

"No, no, no. You're a friend, and I'm not making my friend spend money."

"HA! That's a riot." The two kunoichi turned around, seeing Zaku and Dosu walking up behind them. "You and Zaku both always leave me with the bill whenever we eat out."

"That's because you always have money on you," Zaku snapped. "Mine disappears."

"No, you SPEND it all idiot! I do this fun little thing called saving money! You ever hear of it?"

"Please, there's nothing I would need to save up for."

"Yeah, that's why I'M always stuck paying the bills at our apartment…"

"Are these two married," Kurotsuchi asked Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi giggled while her teammates glared at the Iwa woman. "Oh lighten up boys. Work the joint stick out of your butts." Sakura's giggling increased while Zaku and Dosu's glares narrowed. Kurotsuchi let out a few week giggles as well before waving her hand about, "Okay that one was a low blow."

"I told you that she was too much like you," Dosu snapped at Zaku.

"Hey, I'm nothing like that guy," Kurotsuchi snapped, pointing a threatening finger at Zaku's face.

"Don't get all pissy with me. He's the one who said it."

"Whatever, do you guys want something or are you here to join in on girl's time?"

"Just wanted to know how long you were keeping our teammate," Dosu questioned, pointing to Sakura.

"Not too long. We're just looking around stores, shopping and all that. I'm sure you two would love to spend quality time together like that wouldn't you?" Zaku rolled his eyes while Dosu sighed, rubbing his forehead in aggravation.

"Just be true to your word and get her back before dark, otherwise Kakashi and Rin sensei will freak out," Zaku replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I keep my word kiddo, just calm down. Now go back to whatever it is you two do without Sakura. I assume make out right?"

"I hate her so much," Zaku muttered before turning around. Dosu huffed, shooting Sakura a quick glance before following his partner.

Sakura sighed, feeling bad for her teammates. "Don't you think you're just a bit too hard on them? I mean those two aren't above a good…or bad joke, but you're going a smidge too far I think."

"Yeah, but they make it so easy. I'm surprised they haven't joked about you and I being lesbians or something."

"Well…" Sakura grabbed her arm, rubbing it nervously, "I think it's because of me. If it were you and somebody else they would totally give you a taste of their own medicine. But…I'm like their sister, and they probably don't want to make fun of me."

"And whose fault would that be," Kurotsuchi questioned, her hands on her hips as she leaned forward into Sakura's face, "Hm missy?"

"I guess that'd be my fault," Sakura replied, a smirk coming across her face before she pushed Kurotsuchi back a bit. "I'll give them the green light next time we see them."

"Now, about this business of buying you at least one something," Kurotsuchi exclaimed. Sakura let out an over exaggerated sigh, knowing that there would be no arguing with the woman on this matter. "Well pick something Haruno."

"Give me a minute. There was so much stuff that I liked it's hard to choose." Sakura tapped her chin lightly with her finger. "This is why I wanted my uncle to be here…" Kurotsuchi crossed her arms, tapping her foot impatiently. "I think there's something at the last store. Come on." Sakura grabbed her friend's arm and yanked her back to the last store they went to.

In a matter of minutes, Sakura picked out a kimono for Kurotsuchi to pay for. The Iwa kunoichi took the outfit towards the front desk, leaving Sakura to browse the store again. "Is that all for you Lady Kurotsuchi," the store clerk asked. The kunoichi looked back over her shoulder, seeing Sakura smiling at a stuffed moose.

"I want what that girl is looking at too," Kurotsuchi replied, pointing in Sakura's direction.

"You can take that, on the house." Kurotsuchi smiled in appreciation before pulling out a handful of money. She took the kimono, walked over to Sakura and grabbed the moose, much to her friend's bewilderment.

"Thanks buddy," Kurotsuchi exclaimed. The kunoichi left the store, causing Sakura to look back and forth between the clerk and the door. The clerk simply smiled then waved goodbye to Sakura. The Konoha kunoichi quickly rushed out of the store where Kurotsuchi waited with a wide grin. "So, what shall we do next?"

"I said one thing! Not two!"

"But you were looking so longingly at this moose. I couldn't keep true love like this from blossoming." Sakura rolled her eyes, taking both the moose and kimono to carry herself before walking away. Kurotsuchi giggled before she skipped forward once to catch up with her friend. "You can't tell me you're disappointed can you?"

"No," Sakura pouted. "You cheated the system."

"Lady Kurotsuchi!" The two kunoichi stopped and turned around just as two Iwa shinobi appeared. "Your father and grandfather request your presence immediately. It's an emergency."

"Um, o-okay." Kurotsuchi turned to Sakura, "Sorry, family business and all that." Sakura nodded in understanding before Kurotsuchi followed the two messengers.

"Sakura!" The pink haired kunoichi turned around again, seeing Dosu, Zaku, and Rin running up to her. "Come on, we're leaving right now."

"Wait, what? Why?"

"Don't ask questions," Rin snapped, grabbing the young girl's arm. "Move!" Sakura yelped as she barely managed to keep hold of her things while being dragged along by Rin.

* * *

Jiraiya sighed heavily as he looked around the area. Fires were scattered about, blades and blood littered the ground, and bodies filled the empty spaces. "We were too late," the Sannin murmured.

"We can't be for sure," Zabuza replied, sitting on an overturned trailer with his sword sticking out of the ground next to him. "This could've been the work of bandits. There aren't many things that are more defenseless than a movie crew."

"No, this was done way too quickly," Obito replied, observing the area carefully with his Sharingan. "Bandits would look for a quick payday, not slaughter everyone on sight."

"You'd be surprised," Zabuza muttered knowingly. "But you're right for the most part. These people were killed quickly and quietly. There aren't many bodies that got outside the set before they were slaughtered. Even for Haku and I alone it would be hard to not let at least one of them slip by us."

"So there's a chance that somebody escaped," Obito stated. "Which means that we could find out who did this!"

"I didn't say it was impossible, just hard." The spiky haired Uchiha groaned, slumping down as he glared at the swordsmen.

"These were definitely all meant to be fatal wounds," Shizune said, looking over one of the bodies. "Zabuza is right though. They were meant to be killed as quickly and quietly as possible so that nobody could get away."

"Have you picked up anything yet Hana," Jiraiya questioned, growing tired of everyone telling him how these innocent people were slaughtered.

"It's difficult," the Inuzuka shouted. She was scurrying around the outskirts of the set to pick up any sort of scent. "Whoever did this is good. It's hard to pick up a scent that isn't smoke or death."

"We should've brought a sensor ninja," Zabuza sniped. "It would be impossible for them to avoid that."

"Unless they're a hundred miles away. Chakra doesn't leave a scent behind," Obito stated. "Besides, Hana's the best there is. If there's any chance of sniffing them out, she'll find it."

"Got something!"

"Told you," Obito quickly added.

"Perfume, sweat, some blood. That would fit a princess gone actress's scent right?"

"It's a lead," Jiraiya replied. "Hana, you've got point. Shizune you stick behind her. Obito, you're behind me and Zabuza you bring up the rear!"

The shinobi quickly shot forward, following Hana's nose. The squad moved quickly through the forest, needing to catch up with their enemies who had a huge head start. The group made it out of the forest and immediately had to stop. Hana gasped in confusion as she looked out over a massive forest from atop a cliff. The others stood behind the Inuzuka, also looking out over the forest in confusion.

"And you were so proud," Zabuza muttered, poking fun at Obito.

"I don't get it," Hana snapped. "Their scent leads to this spot and then stops! Nobody can fake their scent! They can mask it, but they can't lead it one way while they go another!"

"You don't think they threw the princess over the cliff do you," Shizune muttered.

"No," Jiraiya muttered. The Sannin whirled around, screaming as he lifted his foot high into the air before bringing it down with all his might. The ground broke under the force of the Sannin's foot. A massive crevice snaked its way forward, causing four figures to spring out of the ground before it reached them. "They've been here the whole time…"

Four cloaked and hooded figures landed on the ground, sliding to a halt. One of the figures had a young woman with long black hair in hand. Immediately after stopping, the man raised a knife to the woman's throat.

"Stay right there," the man threatened.

"They're ANBU," Hana muttered angrily, noticing the masks on their faces.

"No," Jiraiya replied. "They're Danzo's personal division of ANBU Black Ops. They're a mysterious and secret organization called Root. They're raised from a young age to be nothing more than obedient slaves to Danzo's will. They're given code names at a young age, and don't even remember their real names. They're usually raised in pairs, and once they're old enough the two are forced to try and kill one another. This way, Root agents aren't blinded by emotions."

"Heh, that old bastard is stealing customs from Kirigakure," Zabuza replied. "I killed an entire class of possible Genin candidates single handedly before I even got into the academy."

"You move and we kill the girl," the Root agent threatened once again.

"You wouldn't risk it," Jiraiya snapped. "She's too valuable to Konoha's cause to let her die! Danzo wants an audience with Doto Kazahana. The princess is too valuable a target to just kill her on the spot."

"She's more valuable to Konoha dead than in the hands of Akatsuki," the Root agent replied calmly. "Right Master Jiraiya?"

"Am I supposed to be impressed with your knowledge?"

"Fu, Torune, Sai, distract them while I get away with the princess." The other three agents made no sign of acknowledgement, but the apparent leader turned and ran into the forest with the princess in hand.

"After him," Jiraiya ordered.

Obito shot forward, but was cut off by one of the agents. Immediately, the spiky haired Uchiha made lightning fast hand signs and launched a fireball at the Root agent. The Konoha shinobi shot to the side, the edge of his cloak catching on fire. The agent landed on the ground and threw his cloak and mask off. To Root agent was still almost entire covered by his wardrobe, with the only skin showing was his lower mouth. Shizune stopped next to Obito, watching the opponent carefully.

Jiraiya moved directly after the leader, but was cut off by the other two Root agents. The Sannin scowled as he readied himself. Suddenly, a thick mist covered the area. The pair of Root agents looked around in confusion. Jiraiya simply smirked, knowing that this was their opening. Zabuza and Hana shot past the two Root agents, slipping by them easily. The mist started to lift, meaning Jiraiya had to get the attention of the two shinobi in front of him quickly.

"Fireball jutsu," Jiraiya shouted. The Root agents turned back to the Sannin and jumped apart, as the fireball very nearly consumed them both. "Bring it on," the Sannin challenged, turning to the older Root agent while the young one landed behind him.

* * *

Zabuza and Hana quickly chased after the last Root agent. It didn't take long for the shinobi to realize he was being followed. The Root agent landed on the branch of a tree and placed his hand on the base. He watched carefully as Zabuza and Hana approached him quickly.

"Don't get any closer," the princess, Koyuki, shouted. Zabuza's eyes widened a bit in shock. The Root agent scoffed as a sharpened pillar of wood shot out of the tree.

Zabuza quickly grabbed his sword, and with a mighty cry cleaved the thick wood in half. Hana narrowly avoided the chunk that flew right over her head before gasping in shock. The Root agent scowled before turning around and running away.

"What the hell was that," Zabuza shouted.

"Wood style," Hana muttered in disbelief.

"What the hell is wood style?"

"You're joking right? Wood style was the special ninjutsu developed by the First Hokage! He used it to capture all nine tailed beasts, and defeat Madara Uchiha!" Zabuza's eyes widened slightly at the name. "It's an ability that was supposed to have died with Hashirama Senju. The fact that this guy can use it means that Danzo defiled the corpse of Konoha's founding father!" Zabuza huffed, turning back to the agent in front of them. "We need to stop him, without hurting the princess."

"Got it handled." Zabuza stopped suddenly on a tree branch. Hana looked back with confusion. The swordsmen pulled his massive sword back and screamed before throwing it forward with all his might. Hana screamed before darting to the side to avoid the sword coming at her. The massive blade flew end over end, cutting through tree branches like they were nothing.

The Root agent turned his head, hearing the wood split behind him. He saw the sword coming at him at high speeds. The agent threw the princess to the side in an attempt to form a jutsu before the sword cleaved him in two. The blade finally stopped when it stuck into the base of a tree with the handle pointing upward. Zabuza appeared, standing on the end of the handle with one foot behind his ankle and his arms crossed.

Hana was able to quickly grab the princess before she hit the ground. The Inuzuka looked up at the swordsmen with an angry expression, "I said without hurting her you idiot!"

"Is she hurt," Zabuza questioned sarcastically. "Then shut up!"

"Are you alright princess Koyuki," Hana asked, turning to the young girl.

"Who the hell are you people? What's going on?"

"It's a long story, just believe me when I say we're not the bad guys here."

Zabuza looked at the two halves of the man, wondering why there wasn't any blood. Finally, the cloak slipped open a bit, revealing a piece of timber split in half. Zabuza's eyes widened before he slammed his foot into the handle of his sword. The blade tore upward through the base of the tree where the Root agent was coming out from. The agent sprung out of the tree as the edge of Zabuza's sword cut through the tree and skimmed along his cloak. The massive sword spun around once before Zabuza grabbed its handle and fell to the ground. The agent latched himself to another tree and looked down at the swordsmen. Hana also turned around, looking at the agent's face.

He had short brown hair and haunting black eyes. He wore a forehead protector that framed the sides of his face instead of a normal headband.

"Who the hell is this guy," Hana asked Zabuza.

"You expect me to know?"

"I am Agent Yamato," the Root shinobi replied. "I am Danzo's best agent thanks to my wood style jutsu, which I acquired with the grace of Orochimaru-sama's experiments."

"Well isn't that great," Hana muttered.

"Hand over the princess or die," Yamato stated.

"I wouldn't count on that happening Yamato," Zabuza replied, standing up straight as he twirled his sword around. "I suggest you just walk away before things get really messy for you."

"I have a duty to my village, and I will carry it out no matter the cost." Zabuza chuckled before waving his fingers towards Yamato challengingly. The agent huffed before forming a hand sign to attack the swordsmen.

* * *

Kurotsuchi huffed in annoyance as she entered the Tsuchikage's chambers, "What is it grandpa? You took me away from spending some girl time with Sakura." Onoki narrowed his eyes on his granddaughter before looking up at the two escorts.

"She was with one of the Konoha shinobi and you didn't grab her," the Tsuchikage snapped.

"W-we didn't know it was one of them sir," one of the shinobi replied.

"What's going on grandpa," Kurotsuchi asked cautiously.

"Those damn shinobi found a connection to me recruiting Akatsuki to carry out a few missions in the past," Onoki replied. "Because SOME idiots let them into the archives room!"

"Wait, y-you relied on Akatsuki once grandpa?"

"It was a long time ago, way before the Chunin Exams! Who hasn't used mercenary help from time to time before?"

"Then they'd understand right grandpa? Why are you going to such extremes to try and capture them?"

"Understanding, HA! You may have befriended the only sane citizen in all of Konoha little one. The rest are paranoid freaks. Then again they were raised to be that way! Danzo wants anything he can use to get rid of me and put someone else in my place, just like he did with Sasori!"

Kurotsuchi put her hand to her chest worryingly, "But they wouldn't would they grandpa? It's just a misunderstanding right…?"

"That's exactly what this is Kurotsuchi! Someone leaked that information to them though! Somebody in the village apparently doesn't want me to be Tsuchikage anymore!" Kurotsuchi looked down the ground. A thought came to the girl's mind before she looked up at her short grandfather.

"What're you going to do to the Konoha shinobi if you catch them?"

"I'm afraid I have no choice but to try to reason with them, or eliminate them entirely." Kurotsuchi gasped, immediately falling into worry for her pink haired friend.

"B-but that'll spark a war with Konoha! You know we'd never survive something like that!"

"Maybe we can. Konoha and Suna both don't have their Jinchuriki, and we have two. Not only that but we could try to get Akatsuki to help us if need be, or make an alliance with that damned Raikage, A. We have fallback options my granddaughter, don't worry."

"But I-I don't want you to have to kill Sakura, or her teammates!"

"I may not have a choice! This is for the safety of the village!"

"Relying on rogue shinobi, or making alliances with foreign lands is for the benefit of the village?"

"Either way Konoha will try to overthrow me! They've been waiting for years to instill their might into the village, and this is the perfect opportunity!"

"Just don't fight back! They might not try to kill you if you just retire!"

Onoki's eyes widened in rage as he rose from his throne, "How dare you. Tsuchikages have never retired, and I don't intend to be the first to step down out of fear for my life! I'll fight a hundred Konoha squadrons before I cower in fear before Danzo!"

"Screw your damn pride grandpa! Your pride doesn't mean anything if you're dead!"

"Take her out of here, and make sure she's safe," Onoki ordered. Kurotsuchi looked back as she was grabbed by her two escorts. She screamed, trying to break free but was dragged away.

"Grandpa, don't be an idiot!" Tears flowed freely down the young girl's face, paining Onoki's heart ever so slightly. "Don't hurt them please!" The guards left the Tsuchikage's chambers, leaving the short old man alone with his thoughts.

* * *

"Lord Tsuchikage…" Onoki sighed, looking up to see his son, Kitsuchi, standing at the entrance. "I'm sorry…" Onoki opened his mouth to question as to why, until his son was shoved flat onto the ground. A strange hound made of pure lightning shot across the chambers at blinding speeds. Onoki's eyes widened just before the beast hit.

Rocks and dirt were thrown up into the air as Kakashi jumped over Kitsuchi's unconscious body. A second later, Onoki flew out of the dust with his small fist pulled back. Kakashi's eyes widened before the Tsuchikage punched him in the stomach with all his might. The masked Jonin groaned before moving his eyes downward. Onoki glared at Kakashi for a moment before the Konoha shinobi erupted in a surge of lightning. The Tsuchikage screamed in pain, unable to move an inch.

Rin shot through the entrance, chakra as sharp as razor blades flowing around her hands. Onoki looked up, seeing the kunoichi charging him. The Tsuchikage sneered before letting out a brief cry. The lightning flowing around him was dispersed by a thin layer of dust around his body. Rin stopped, covering his face as she coughed in the middle of the dust cloud. Onoki flew away and started gathering the dust at a central point to form a pyramid like object. Just before he could launch the attack, something caught the short Kage's attention.

Dosu screamed as he swung his arm, attempting to strike Onoki only to miss by mere inches. The Tsuchikage flew back across the room, floating a few feet off the ground. Dosu slid to a halt, flicking the Melody Arm. Onoki smirked, remaining unaffected by the Genin's jutsu.

"What the," Dosu murmured.

"Dust in his ears," Kakashi replied, walking into sight from the entrance doors. "Right Tsuchikage?"

"Sorry what, I couldn't hear you," the short Kage mocked. Kakashi narrowed his eyes bitterly at the old man. "I thought you and your students would all be long gone after you figured out I was on to you."

"Our mission was to investigate the village, and if need be, kill you Tsuchikage," Kakashi said. "I intend to carry out this mission."

"With three Jonin and eight Genin you all will need more than luck on your side," Onoki sniped. "I never underestimate my opponents, but that doesn't mean I think you have a shot!"

"We'll just see won't we," Kakashi questioned.

"I am Onoki of Both Scales! I will not be defeated by a group of children and their pitiful teachers!"

Baki fell from the ceiling, a blade of wind in his hand. His eyes widened as he readied himself to end the Tsuchikage below. Onoki huffed before spinning around the Jonin. Baki gasped before being punched in the back. The Jonin smashed into the ground, bounced forward twice before flying past Kakashi who remained motionless.

"Well that was…pretty much a failure," Dosu stated, surprised by the short man's strength.

"Don't take your eyes off him Dosu," Rin snapped in a sharp tone. Dosu turned his head forward, watching as the Tsuchikage slowly descended to the floor. "Kakashi…how much chakra do you have left?"

"After using the lightning hound and a lightning clone? Barely over half."

"Alright, stay back and wait for an opening," Rin ordered. "If you see a chance to, hit him with your lightning blade."

"And if he comes directly for me," Kakashi questioned.

"Then defend yourself genius boy." Rin lifted up her arm and brushed her shoulder off with one swipe.

Onoki's eyes moved from one side to the next as two more children were on either side of him. Hinata had her Byakugan active and her palm pulled back, ready to strike. Sasuke flared his Sharingan and readied himself to stab Onoki with a kunai. The Tsuchikage simply shot straight upward, avoiding both strikes. Sasuke and Hinata scowled, looking up before jumping back towards the Jonin. Onoki narrowed his eyes skeptically before a powerful force of wind hit him in the back. The Tsuchikage flew towards the ground and smashed into the stone floor, creating a small crater.

Zaku performed a slow back flip before spinning around gently. He landed in a crouched position with one of his legs outstretched, watching the crater carefully. To the boy's shock, Onoki simply floated out of the crater unharmed.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes for a moment. He looked down and kicked the ground forcefully. To his surprise, he brought up a small, fist sized chunk of the floor up along with an alarming amount of dust.

"Damn it," Kakashi cursed. "This whole place is one big dust pan! The walls and floor are caked with a thin layer of dust, and this stone is designed to make as much dust as possible when destroyed!"

"So in other words," Dosu began in a low murmur, "We're so screwed…"

"Thank you for making sure we all knew buddy," Zaku shouted. "As if that wasn't obvious enough already!"

"Both of you shut up," Kakashi snapped. "Watch your opponent!" Onoki pulled his arms across his chest. _'I don't like the looks of this…'_

The Tsuchikage screamed as he threw his arms out, launching a huge wave of dust from around his body. Kakashi's eyes widened as the dust came towards him. All the Konoha shinobi raised their arms up to shield themselves as the dust came towards them. When it hit, the dust had the force of a falling boulder. Kakashi, Rin, and their students were thrown back with pained cries. Sakura and the other Genin were hiding behind the door way, and they too were blown away when the dust destroyed the walls they were leaning against.

"It doesn't have to end this way you know," Onoki exclaimed. "Just ignore the fact that I got aid from Akatsuki before I knew who they were and I'll let you live."

"Can we do that please," Zaku asked as he stumbled about in a disorienting daze. Kakashi scowled at Zaku as he rose to his feet.

"I honestly don't know how Anko tolerates you some days."

"A group of Genin cannot defeat a Kage. You're mere grunts fighting an entire army. I will not allow Konoha's paranoia be the end of my village!"

Dosu groaned as he rose to his feet, pulling his sleeve up to show his Melody Arm. Rin stood up, shaking her head to get some of the dust out before holding her hands up just as chakra started to flow around them. Kankuro readied his puppet Crow while Temari slammed the end of her fan into the ground. Hinata and Sasuke focused their dojutsu on Onoki while Shino raised his arms, summoning a swarm of bugs around him. Sakura reluctantly pulled out a kunai in preparation for battle. This was the last thing she wanted to do in Iwagakure.

'_How is it I always get the worse case scenario…?'_

Zaku sighed, seeing the rest of his squad readying themselves for a fight. "Well, I guess I got no choice." Zaku held his arms out and his hands open, "Bring it on ya old geezer!"

"Get an opening on him," Kakashi ordered. "GO!"

Kankuro screamed as he sent Crow flying forward. The puppet's head popped back and shot a series of chakra enhanced knives at the Kage. Onoki simply twirled to the side, leaving an opening for Temari to use her wind fan. The kunoichi screamed as she swung her weapon back and forth twice, sending powerful gusts of wind. The Tsuchikage simply moved back as the gusts of wind punched holes into his floor, creating more dust. Onoki smirked, forming a hand sign to use the dust to attack the Sand Siblings.

Before it could be shaped and used, another blast of wind scattered the dust far away from Onoki. The Tsuchikage turned his head, seeing Zaku with a cocky smile jump in front of him before turning his air holes in his direction. Onoki crossed his arms into an X over his chest as he was blasted by Zaku's attack, pushing him back with surprising force. Onoki scowled, realizing that he was going to fast to move his arms to make a proper hand sign.

Dosu appeared in a blur behind Onoki with his arm pulled back. The Tsuchikage turned his head, sensing the boy behind him. Dosu screamed as he swung his arm at Onoki's head, only for the Kage to duck and pass by under it. Dosu slammed his foot into the ground and skidded to a halt against the ground. Onoki simply spun backwards until he slowed himself down enough to move his arms.

Once again, Onoki turned his head to the sound of birds chirping. Sasuke screamed as he dove lunged forward and thrusted his jutsu at the old Kage. Onoki moved back, narrowly avoiding Sasuke's Chidori. The short Tsuchikage grabbed Sasuke's arm and wrist with all his might before hurling the boy into the air and sent him smashing into the ceiling.

Onoki formed a hand sign, forming a cube of dust in front of his body. Zaku and Dosu both had looks of fear on their faces, worried as to why the jutsu was aimed at them. With a forceful cry, Onoki sent the dust cube forward. The two Genin gasped in shock. They would've attempted to move, but Hinata landed in front of them both and started a rotation. Her chakra barrier ate through Onoki's dust jutsu in seconds.

The Tsuchikage scowled angrily as Hinata stopped her rotation, smirking cockily at Onoki. The short man turned his head, hearing the crackling sound of fire. Onoki cursed under his breath before flying backwards as Sasuke's fireball went past him. Kakashi appeared behind Onoki, his lightning blade charged and pulled back. The Tsuchikage flipped backwards over Kakashi's jab and gave a powerful kick to the side of the Jonin's head. Kakashi quickly rebounded off his hands and stood in front of Hinata and the annoying duo.

Crow once again was sent forward, this time throwing its chest out to release a swarm of bombs. The Tsuchikage scowled as the bombs exploded around him. Rin and Sakura rushed in while Shino sent a swarm of bugs to surround the cloud of smoke. Rin's eye caught the smoke breaking up top and shot forward. Onoki flew upward, a sphere of dust having been launched the second he revealed himself. Rin's eyes widened in shock as the dust closed in on her.

"RIN," Kakashi shouted.

The medical ninja pulled her arm back and focused her chakra before swinging forward with a loud cry. She sent a brief but powerful burst of chakra through her hand, compressed and lengthened it to be twice as long as her whole body. The chakra blade sliced the dust sphere in half. The two halves quickly fell apart into two piles of worthless dust. Sakura gapped in awe, quickly recognizing what Rin just did.

The brunette landed on the ground while the Tsuchikage had his back against the furthest wall. "Rin eh? You're the famous kunoichi who was taught by Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash eh? I should've recognized you from your profile Rin the Medical Butcher." The brunette scowled fiercely at the name. Sakura turned to her medic teacher with bewilderment.

"The Medical Butcher," Zaku repeated. "What's with everyone having these weird ass titles?"

"It's the things of folk legends," Onoki began. "It was a turning point in the war for our side. We were starting to make successful advancements towards the Land of Fire. Konoha sent a small team, one of the best, out to cripple us. Team Minato was assigned to destroy the Kenchi Bridge and destroy our supply line. The Yellow Flash was assigned to send the team in the right direction, but was to break off afterwards to help in the front lines. Kakashi Hatake was in charge as team leader.

"A team of three children made it to the Kenchi Bridge, where I set up a squad of elite Jonin to protect it! Over twenty Jonin were there, and all but one was killed. The bridge was destroyed, and the one Jonin that survived came back to tell the tale of the bridge's destruction. Kakashi Hatake, so fast and powerful with his combination of lightning style jutsus and his father's sword was proclaimed Konoha's Second White Fang. Rin was graceful and deadly, using her knowledge of medical ninjutsu to puncture internal organs without breaking the skin was named the Medical Butcher. And last, but not least, a young Uchiha boy wearing goggles used his fire style and Sharingan to distract and watch his enemy's movements. He was dubbed Obito Uchiha: The Blazing Sharingan."

* * *

The 'Blazing Sharingan' screamed for his life as he barely managed to avoid a barrage of shuriken. Obito rolled forward off his hands and looked back with a scowl, "This is ridiculous!" With his Sharingan, Obito was able to see that his opponent has a colony of bugs inside of him, like the Aburame. Unlike the Aburame, these bugs were very different and poisonous to the touch. He and Shizune concluded that their opponent was Torune Aburame. Obito scowled as he rose to his feet.

Before either could attack, Shizune launched a cloud of purple fog from her mouth. Torune looked up for a moment before he huffed dismissively. With the bugs in his system, he could eat the poison in his body away. It was a stupid mistake on their part.

Torune walked into the poison fog, breathing casually as he kept his eyes peeled for his opponents. The agent heard a footstep from behind and whirled around. He watched carefully for a moment and waited patiently. If anyone was behind him it wouldn't be long before they breathed in the gas. Someone tapped Torune lightly on the shoulder. The agent's eyes widened before he cursed himself for falling prey to such an obvious trick. Torune spun around, attempting to strike whoever was behind him.

Obito simply raised his hand and caught Torune's gloved fist without so much as a frightened stare. In fact, Obito looked rather ridiculous with his cheeks ballooned out to hold his breath. The Uchiha nonchalantly looked at his opponent's fist before turning his eyes to Torune. The Root agent cursed himself for looking into the Sharingan eyes, even for a moment. Torune was put into a genjutsu and his body went limp. Obito released his fist and let the Root agent drop to the ground in a heap.

The young Uchiha's face, now turning blue from lack of oxygen, quickly ran out of the poison cloud. As soon as he cleared it, he took a deep breath of air, filling his lungs completely. Obito bent over, putting his hands on his knees as he panted to catch his breath.

"Are you alright Obito-kun," Shizune asked.

"Fine, just…fine." Obito nearly passed out before catching himself in a careless stumble.

* * *

Jiraiya stumbled back as Sai moved closer. The boy swung his tipless tanto at the Sannin, only to be stopped wit hone hand. Fu appeared behind Jiraiya, ready to use the Yamanaka's secret jutsu to switch minds. Jiraiya spun around, putting Sai out in front of him. Fu's eyes widened in shock before his body slumped over limply. Sai looked up at Jiraiya in fear, knowing what was going to happen next.

Jiraiya slammed his leg into Sai's midsection, launching the boy into a nearby tree. Fu/Sai smashed into the tree with a pained cry. Jiraiya ran up, grabbed the back of the boy's head and slammed his face into the tree once again. Sai groaned as he fell over on his side. Jiraiya looked down at him, almost pitifully. He wouldn't kill a child, even if he was a slave to Danzo.

The Sannin looked up, seeing that Shizune and Obito dealt with the other agent, "Both of you, come on! We have to help Zabuza and Hana!" Jiraiya leapt off into the forest, followed by Shizune and a groaning Obito.

* * *

Zabuza swung his blade, cutting through another chunk of lumber. The swordsmen glared at Yamato who continued to keep his distance. They both knew if Yamato got close to that sword, Zabuza would split him in half. The Root agent paused for a moment, scanning the immediate area. His eyes widened in realization before he started looking around the forest.

"No!" Zabuza chuckled mockingly before charging forward.

'_The little dog girl managed to slip away with the princess after all,'_ Zabuza smugly thought to himself.

The swordsmen pulled out a pair of kunai and hurled them at Yamato. The Root agent looked down in shock before launching himself off the tree. Zabuza placed his foot on the trunk before shooting himself towards Yamato. The agent cursed before throwing his arms towards Zabuza. All the surrounding trees grew extra branches, all which jutted towards Zabuza to stop him. The swordsmen screamed as he swung forward as the sharpened branches moved to impale him. Yamato gasped in shock, watching as the sword left Zabuza's fingertips before his jutsu hit. The massive blade spun forward, barely missing Yamato's head.

The branches stabbed through Zabuza on all sides, causing him to scream in pain. Yamato landed on a tree branch and watched carefully. He heard a liquid dripping onto the ground below, but to his surprise it wasn't blood. Zabuza erupted in a splash of water. Yamato gasped in shock, looking around quickly for the real one. A though occurred before Yamato looked up. Zabuza screamed as his sword was held high above his head. Yamato gapped in awe, attempting to form a jutsu before Zabuza swung downward with all his might. The sword went right down Yamato's center and through the tree branch. Zabuza landed on the ground, dirt flying up under his feet. The tree branch, as well as Yamato's two halves, hit the ground next.

Zabuza huffed before placing his sword on his shoulders, Yamato's blood dripping off the edge. The swordsmen turned his head as Jiraiya, Obito, and Shizune arrived. "Where's Hana," Jiraiya asked.

"I told her to get away with the princess. That way those Root bastards couldn't slip by us with her." Shizune groaned, turning away from the gory mess that was now Yamato. "Did you finish the others?"

"One of them was of the Yamanaka Clan, and possessed the kid," Jiraiya said. "I'm not going to kill a boy who was manipulated by Danzo."

"You'd probably be doing him a favor," Zabuza murmured. "Anyway, I told Hana not go head back to base. We don't know how many others there are. They might have some way of tracking us."

"Jiraiya sensei, perhaps it would be better to end those Root agents now," Obito suggested. "If not then they'll only come back to pester us, and they're personal agents of Danzo's. If nothing else we could try to get some info out of them." Jiraiya sighed heavily, crossing his arms before turning to Obito.

"I don't want the boy to be killed…the others I don't care so much about…" Obito nodded then turned to run back to the cliff. Zabuza quickly followed while Jiraiya and Shizune went to search for Hana.

* * *

Obito and Zabuza landed in the opening. The Uchiha looked around in shock, wondering where the unconscious bodies went. Zabuza walked into the opening, his sword resting on his shoulders.

"So where are the bodies for me to carve up?"

"Th-they should be right here. There's no way they could've recovered that—damn it!" Zabuza quizzically looked at Obito. "That one from the Yamanaka Clan, he must've released the jutsu right before Jiraiya sensei knocked him out! He played dead then gathered up his buddies right after we left."

"Smart move," Zabuza admitted. "All the more reason _not_ to head back to base. Nothing we can do now, so let's just meet back up with the others." The two Akatsuki shinobi jumped off back into the forest.

* * *

At the bottom of the cliff, Fu rested Torune against a nearby rock. He was going to be out of it for awhile. Sai was just coming to, groaning as he held his head in pain. "Sai, Captain Yamato is dead. Send word back to Orochimaru."

"Yes sir," Sai groaned. "What about lord Danzo? We failed the mission."

"The mission is ongoing. I'd rather die against those Akatsuki scum than go back to lord Danzo in failure. Just send a message to Orochimaru-sama that his little experiment failed." Sai nodded and quickly unrolled a scroll. He pulled out a brush and started moving it across the scroll, forming a bird made of ink. The bird suddenly came to life, popping off the paper. Sai took out another scroll and wrote down a message before handing it to the bird. The ink animal shot up into the sky and soared towards Konoha.

* * *

Orochimaru hummed curiously to himself, watching as a symbol faded away on a scroll that encompassed a whole wall. "Oh dear, Yamato was killed? Looks like Danzo's boys ran into a bit of trouble." The Sannin chuckled as he turned and walked towards the railing on a walkway. "Oh well, I have plenty more were that came from."

Orochimaru's chuckling grew as he moved his eyes slowly between a series of men in strange, cocoon like objects that hung from the wall. The serpent made a hand sign and let out a sharp breath. One of the cocoons opened up, slowly pushing out a naked man covered in a strange goo-like substance. The man rose to his feet and looked towards Orochimaru.

"You've got a mission. Suit up and prepare to join up with Danzo's Root agents got it?" The man, who was an exact copy of Yamato, nodded. He walked away to put on a new ANBU uniform. Orochimaru laughed quietly before turning around and heading back into his laboratory.


	24. The New Iwagakure

Kakashi flipped backwards with his students as a cloud of dust shot up. Onoki floated high in his chambers, objects of dust hovering around him. The old Kage was keeping his distance since most of his opponents were close to mid-range. Rin watched carefully for any sudden movements from the Tsuchikage. Across from the brunette were her temporary students. She scowled, praying that Onoki wouldn't choose to try and pick them off first.

The Tsuchikage's eyes moved back and forth between the groups of attackers before him. Finally, Onoki spun around and hurled one of his dust cubes at Kakashi's group. The Konoha shinobi scattered before the cube touched them. Kankuro cried out as he sent Crow darting forward at Onoki. The Tsuchikage turned and dodged the puppet before launching a hand-sized dust sphere. Temari stood next to her brother and swung her fan forward twice. Two gusts of wind hit the dust sphere, destroying the jutsu before it hit Kankuro.

Sasuke ran vertically up the wall before springing off and throwing a pair of kunai at the old man. Onoki moved to the side, avoiding both of the knives before turning and attacking Sasuke. The young Uchiha twisted his body around in midair to avoid the old man's attack before landing smoothly on the ground.

"This is getting us nowhere fast," Sasuke stated angrily. "He's not giving us an opening!"

"He's given us plenty," Rin replied. "It's just that he's too far for us to attack him. We need some way to close the distance…"

"Knives or explosives don't work because he can just dodge em," Kankuro pointed out. "We need something fast that hits hard."

Sakura reached back into her pouch and pulled out a short stick of bamboo, "I got it!" All eyes were on Sakura and her strange new weapon. The Genin all questioned what she was going to do with such a short stick, but Kakashi and Rin recognized it immediately.

Sakura aimed the stick of bamboo at Onoki and closed her eyes. She sent a short, powerful surge of her chakra through the stick, and launched a bolt of lightning forward. The blast nearly knocked Sakura off her feet.

Onoki's eyes widened in shock, raising his arms to try and get his dust to shield himself. The lightning bolt was too fast, and struck Onoki. The short Tsuchikage was launched across his chambers and smashed into the back wall, screaming as lightning surged through his tiny body. Finally, the surging lightning stopped along with Onoki's pained screams. The Tsuchikage slowly fell from the wall and hit the ground hard.

Sakura watched carefully to make sure the Tsuchikage wouldn't come back up and attack. To hers and everyone else's relief, Onoki stayed down. Kakashi slowly turned his head towards Sakura, his eyes narrowed skeptically.

"A lightning barrel," the masked Jonin whispered. "Most likely she got it from her uncle back during the war when they still made those little toys. She used a flare as a weapon, and used it effectively. Not bad if I say so myself."

"Sakura," Zaku shouted, sounding angry. "Why didn't you use that sooner?" Kakashi's eyes moved from the boy back to the pink haired girl. He too was curious as to why Sakura didn't use that idea sooner.

Sakura simply stared at the ground, remorseful as to what she just did. She did do what her village told her to do, but she also betrayed her friend Kurotsuchi. What would she think when she found out Sakura killed her grandfather.

Before she could reply, a sudden force slammed into Sakura's midsection. The kunoichi's ribs broke immediately, and she let out an agonizing cry before being launched backwards. Zaku and Dosu both gasped in shock before Sakura slammed into the former. Zaku groaned when he hit the ground, Sakura lying on top of him. Dosu turned his head, seeing a smoking Onoki panting lightly while glaring dangerously at the pink haired kunoichi.

"That…was a cheap little trick…" Dosu immediately readied himself against Onoki, knowing that he would try to come for Sakura.

"Attack him," Kakashi ordered his teammates. His three students plus the Suna Genin all rushed to attack Onoki. The Tsuchikage screamed angrily and moved back from his attackers.

Zaku had a look of horror on his face as he held Sakura. The girl was shaking violently, holding her stomach as tears flowed out of her eyes. "Sakura…Sakura!"

"Hurts," the girl wept. "I…it hurts…" Rin slid across the ground, kneeling next to Sakura before taking her from Zaku. The young kunoichi screamed in pain as she was moved onto the ground.

"Hey," Zaku snapped fiercely, "She's hurt!"

"I know, but this is the best way for me to help her," Rin fired back. Zaku scowled, forgetting that Rin was in fact a medical ninja. "You and Dosu defend me in case Onoki slips by the others alright!"

"Yes ma'am," Zaku muttered bitterly. Rin's hands started to glow as Zaku stood up. As soon as the medic's hands made contact, Sakura screamed in agony, causing Zaku to tense up. He slowly turned his head back to his teammate, who was trembling violently. Zaku clenched his hands, eyes widening in fury.

"Zaku," Dosu cautioned. "Don't lose your head over this." The black haired shinobi snapped his head towards his teammate. "I care about Sakura too, but if you lose control over that curse mark now, you'll probably just end up hurting her and everyone else." Zaku felt like screaming as he looked back at Sakura.

Kakashi threw a high kick at Onoki's head. The Tsuchikage drifted under the strike and moved past the Jonin. Sasuke launched a fireball at the Kage while Shino sent a wave of bugs behind that. Onoki simply flew over both attacks and continued towards Sakura.

Hinata fell back, standing in front of Zaku and Dosu as another line of defense. The two Suna Siblings both launched their attacks at Onoki in a last ditch effort to stop him. The Tsuchikage flew above both attacks and readied a giant cube of dust. The Tsuchikage launched it at Sakura and the others.

The Genin gasped and scattered. Rin lifted up Sakura quickly and jumped out of the way. The dust cube hit the ground, forming a massive crater underneath. The brunette medic flipped around gracefully and gently placed Sakura back on the ground without so much as a pained yelp from the injured girl.

Zaku placed both feet on the ground and turned towards Onoki with fire in his eyes. "You…cowardly little man!" Onoki turned with a disdainful stare. Zaku's arms started to shake in an effort to control himself. "You would attack an injured girl?"

"In the end I'm going to have to kill all of you if you won't listen to reason," Onoki replied. "And don't act so high-and-mighty with me. Konoha has done more than its fair share of disreputable things to my people. Do you know during the war how many families were killed, how many children were murdered in cold blood by your people?"

"I didn't do that and neither did Sakura! You wanna fight somebody you fight us first got it?"

"Gladly…" Zaku readied himself against Onoki who shot towards him.

Before either could attack, Dosu shot past his teammate at blinding speeds. Onoki's eyes flickered for a moment before he crossed his arms over his face. Dosu sprung forward and threw his elbow forward, using his other arm to support the blow. The Genin's elbow smashed into Onoki's arms, throwing the Kage back quite a bit. Onoki spun around as Dosu charged at him again. The Genin jumped up and spun backwards. Onoki raised his arm up and blocked the strike. The Kage grabbed Dosu's leg and hurled the boy across the room. Dosu went flying end over end, bouncing forcefully across the ground a few times before smashing into the wall. Onoki slammed his feet into the ground, causing a giant chuck of the floor to shoot up. The short Kage caught the rock and threw it with all his might at Dosu. The Genin staggered out of the wall, ready to keep fighting before he was smashed by the rock Onoki threw.

A vein popped out in Zaku's forehead and fists before slowly turning his attention to the Tsuchikage. The boy had his teeth clenched tightly, furious groans slipping through every now and then. Zaku's eyes flared as he let out a brief, enraged cry. His chakra started to grow, changing from light blue to a dark purple.

Onoki's eyes focused on Zaku, curiously watching the boy, "What is happening to this one's chakra…?"

"You wanna pick on somebody old man, then try me on for size!"

Sasuke scoffed before moving around. Kakashi noted his student's plan: circle and surround the Tsuchikage. The Jonin nodded to Hinata who ran to the opposite way, and Shino who followed her. Though Kakashi didn't like sending in kids to fight the front lines, he didn't see much choice. Plus this boy's curse mark might give them the opening they need.

Onoki carefully watched the other shinobi forming a large perimeter around him. Zaku's rage grew as his curse mark slowly started to move across his face. The boy vanished in a flash. Onoki's head snapped back forward in shock at the boy's disappearance. Zaku reappeared behind Onoki with his arm pulled back. The Tsuchikage spun around and formed a pyramid made of dust. The old man screamed as he launched the jutsu point blank. Zaku roared at the top of his lungs as he threw his palm forward, unleashing a powerful blast of wind. The pyramid was destroyed, and the force of the blast caused the ground to give way under Zaku's feet. Onoki covered his face, groaning as he struggled not to get blown away. Regardless, the force of the wind sent Onoki sailing.

Sasuke stopped and gasped at what he just witnessed, _'Such power. Is that really the same deadbeat loser?'_

Zaku scowled before springing into the air after Onoki. The Tsuchikage spun around, placing his feet on the ceiling lightly. Forming a few hand signs, Onoki cried out. The ceiling broke apart into a few massive chunks of rock and flew towards Zaku.

The Konoha Genin screamed as he punched right through the first rock. Zaku spun forward, slamming his feet into the second rock before running around it. He sprung off the boulder and used his slicing sound wave to blast through a third. He pressed his hands on the fourth rock, spinning around under the bottom of it. Onoki's eyes widened in shock, watching as this thirteen year old got closer and closer. Zaku ran up the last rock and shot upward. Onoki prepared a cube of dust while moving out of the way. Zaku screamed as he threw his arms forward, unleashing another powerful blast of wind.

* * *

A group of older men turned their heads to the sound of a sudden blast, seeing a chuck of the Tsuchikage's Palace being blown away. Most of the men turned to each other and murmured quietly and fearfully to one another.

"What's going on here," one man finally asked out loud. A group of Iwa shinobi suddenly appeared in front of the group of men, bowing down on one knee.

"High Council, there has been an attack on Tsuchikage Onoki's life. We're to ensure that nothing happens to any of you."

"We don't need help from would-be assassins," one man screamed.

"Don't be so quick to judge," another man replied calmly. The man had long black hair that was tied back into a large bun with a few strands of hair framing the right side of his face. The man looked disinterested and at ease with a cool smirk on his face. "Whoever these 'would-be' assassins are, they managed to get into Onoki's chambers, and it seems as if they're giving him a bit of trouble."

"You think Onoki can't defend himself Councilor Mao," the last councilor questioned.

"We can't leave anything to chance now can we? Onoki dealt with those Akatsuki characters after all. Maybe they're wrapping up loose ends so that Konoha can't trace them. That's how I'd do it anyway…" The councilors looked to each other and started murmuring to each other. Mao leaned back in his seat, looking out to the Tsuchikage's Palace with a calm demeanor.

* * *

Onoki grunted as he brought himself to a forceful stop outside the walls of his own palace. Zaku was starting to irritate him quickly. Not only that, but the boy's power was incredible regardless. He was too much of a threat at this point.

Zaku landed on the ground with a stifled grunt before snapping his head up. The boy's rage was still pumping through his body vigorously. After what the Tsuchikage did to Sakura and Dosu, he'd make sure the old bastard paid.

Sasuke was still in awe at Zaku's newfound power. The Uchiha prodigy gasped faintly as he realized he was actually trembling. The boy's jaw tensed as he groaned through his teeth. _'I'm Sasuke Uchiha! I'm the last of my Clan and I'm trembling in front of this…this nobody! This power of his…it isn't fair!'_

Onoki flew through the hole in his ceiling, flying right towards Zaku. The boy jumped back as the Tsuchikage slammed into the ground. The impact sent out a small gust of wind that pushed Zaku back a bit further. Onoki dug his fingers into the stone and lifted up a large slab of it above his head. The Tsuchikage quickly shot forward as Zaku placed his feet on the ground. Onoki smashed the slab into Zaku and pushed forward with all his might. The boy screamed, trying to break free before his back crashed against the wall. Onoki pulled the slab back and smashed it on Zaku once again. The Tsuchikage moved back, panting lightly as he stared at the slab wedged into the wall.

Kakashi saw an opening, looking to his students, all of whom were closer to their target than he was. To his frustration, the other Genin were all in shock at what they witnessed. Kakashi nearly screamed before he rushed forward.

A sudden and powerful force reduced the slab into tiny pebbles. Onoki raised his arms over his face. Zaku was shouting at the top of his lungs, the dark purple chakra flowing more wildly around him. The curse mark started glowing and spread further across the boy's face. Onoki gasped in shock before he flew away. Zaku's eyes snapped up before lunging after the Tsuchikage. Onoki darted to the side as Zaku flew past him. The boy landed on the wall, creating a crater under his feet.

Zaku threw his head back, screaming in pain as the curse mark continued to spread over his body. His hair grew out and became spikier. The boy clutched the sides of his head, nearly ripping his headband off in the process. Zaku's hair in the back spiked out more, in a fashion similar to Sasuke's, and turned jet black rather than its usual dull black. His eyes turned much darker than before, and his teeth started to become sharper. Strange tattoo like marks came out of the corners of his eyes, running down the bridge of his nose. The marks also curled on the other sides of his eyes, curving up to the ends of his eyebrows. Zaku cried out again as four strange wing-like appendages shot out of his back. Two large ones came out of his shoulder blades and two smaller ones came out just above the waist.

Onoki stared in horror as he suddenly realized what was going on, "That sick, twisted snake…" Zaku turned his head towards Onoki again, a feral growl coming from his mouth. "Danzo would allow Orochimaru to do this to his own people, to his village's children! Konoha has no honor!" The Tsuchikage flew up higher, all the dust from the ground shooting up and spiraling around Onoki like a tornado. "I take my stand here! Iwagakure is done with Konoha! We'll be wiped from the map before I let this injustice stand! I will make sure Konoha is destroyed, no matter the cost!"

Zaku roared as he shot forward. Onoki held his arms out in front of him, forming a cube out of dust aimed right at the boy. Zaku let out a feral snarl before he threw his arm forward, releasing a concentrated blast of wind. The blast tore right through the center of the cube and hit Onoki with tremendous force. The Tsuchikage cried out and flew back. He tried to slow himself down, but failed until he hit the wall. Onoki formed several small spheres of dust and sent them flying in a barrage towards Zaku.

The cursed boy floated for a moment, his wings alternating flaps before he held both of his hands outward. Zaku's razor sharp teeth showed themselves before he unleashed a massive wave of wind. The dust spheres were ripped apart. The loose dust blew back on Onoki who glared at his now mindless opponent.

"This is crazy," Kakashi muttered. He was far from fearing Zaku, but he was shaken by the sudden change the curse mark brought about. Usually Zaku was joking and making smart-ass remarks. Now he was a mindless killing machine, bent only on murdering the one responsible for hurting his teammates. What worried Kakashi is what if he still had these impulses if and when he killed Onoki?

Rin tried her best to focus on Sakura, and not the cold, dark chakra that sent shivers down her spine. Times like this she wished she wasn't a sensor too. Sakura slowly opened her eyes, looking over towards the two airborne fighters. "Za…ku…" The young girl slowly lifted her arm up, but was quickly stopped when Rin grabbed her wrist.

"Please don't move. It'll hurt too much." Sakura whimpered, lowering her arm back to her side. She may have been half unconscious, but Rin could tell that she knew what was going on with Zaku.

Sasuke was now shaking, mostly in fear, but also in anger. Power like this shouldn't be given to these lowly ninja. He was an Uchiha, the most powerful clan in Konoha before its destruction. Why was it that Zaku was allowed such power and not Sasuke?

Onoki sighed before floating up to the highest point of the chambers, "I hate to use this jutsu…but I can't waste any more time playing with you children." Zaku roared as he rushed forward. Onoki turned his head to the boy, slammed his fingers through the ceiling and ripped a chunk of it out. With all his might, Onoki smashed the large chunk of roof into Zaku, sending him flying towards the ground. "Dust style: dust cone!"

Kakashi's eyes widened in alarm at the same time Rin's head whirled around. "Everyone, gather around me now," the masked Jonin ordered. The Suna and Konoha Genin, with Shino carrying Dosu, immediately rushed to Kakashi's side. The Jonin handed Hinata a scroll and then rushed off towards Rin.

Hinata took a second to read that the scroll was used for a barrier jutsu. She wasted no more time, unrolled the scroll onto the ground and slammed her hand in the center of it. She poured her chakra into the scroll, summoning a massive barrier around them.

Kakashi slid next to Rin with a scroll in hand. The brunette pulled out a barrier scroll of her own and set it down next to Sakura. She placed her hand on the seal and used her chakra to form a second barrier around the pink haired Genin. Kakashi used his scroll to set up another barrier around himself, Rin, and Sakura.

Onoki watched as Zaku descended to the ground, looking up at the Tsuchikage. The dust cone expanded a bit, with more dust adding itself to the jutsu. Finally, Onoki's eyes widened as he launched the cone at the ground. Zaku roared, his chakra whirling around him before throwing both arms up at the cone and unleashing another powerful blast of wind. Onoki threw his arms out to the side, expanding the cone's size greatly. Zaku's slicing sound wave hit the cone, but did nothing to stop it. The cursed Genin roared louder as he pushed harder. The ground broke beneath his feet, throwing more dust into the air.

Shino gasped in alarm as he watched the newly formed dust float up to Onoki's cone, "That jutsu can suck up any nearby dust."

"Great, so no matter what that crazy shit does we're all going to die," Kankuro shouted. Dosu groaned, finally coming to. His eyes were suddenly wide open when he saw Zaku in the second stage of the curse mark.

"What the…when did this happen?"

"After you tried taking on Onoki by yourself and got beaten," Sasuke snapped venomously. "Zaku went crazy and his curse mark took over." Dosu scowled, slowly rising to his feet despite the pain he was in. "I would suggest staying down Dosu. There's nothing you can do for him." The masked Genin shot a glare at Sasuke, who returned it in kind.

Sakura's eyes opened a bit wider, and focused on Zaku. She slowly reached out to her monster friend now, a single tear running down her cheek. "Don't…don't lose control over me," Sakura whispered. "Zaku…"

The cursed Genin roared, the crater beneath his feet becoming deeper and wider, only increasing the size and mass of Onoki's jutsu. Zaku roared in strain, falling down onto one knee as the dust cone weighed down on him.

"Increase the amount of chakra you're putting in," Kakashi shouted. The two barriers started glowing brighter from the extra chakra.

Onoki's jutsu eventually became powerful enough that it just fell down upon the Konoha and Suna forces like a sack of bricks. The Tsuchikage's Chambers and every floor below it was immediately reduced to dust on impact.

* * *

The Iwagakure High Council members all gasped in shock as they watched the Tsuchikage Palace crumble. Excited chatter raced through the room, everyone worried or upset at what was going on.

"Onoki-sama has to be alive," one councilman exclaimed. "Only his dust style could have leveled the entire palace like that!"

"He's right, Onoki must've killed the assassins!"

"The question remains why the old man would use such a dangerous jutsu inside of his own palace," Mao murmured curiously. The High Council started chattering amongst themselves once more, contemplating Mao's words.

* * *

Kurotsuchi gasped as she watched the Tsuchikage Palace crumble apart from her bedroom window. Her two guards looked to one another and then back at the girl who was gone. The two ninjas looked at each other in fear before jumping out the window and heading towards the palace. The young kunoichi ran twice as fast as either guard, worry in her eyes as she feared for her Konoha friends…and her grandfather.

* * *

Onoki slowly descended closer to the rubble that was once his palace. He looked around for any sign of movement, on the slim chance that his enemies survived. The old man snapped his head around, hearing the rubble shifting a bit. To his amazement, a bloodied cursed Zaku emerged from the ground, eyes wide with fury. The boy's hair and clothing were tattered and torn. Almost the entire right half of his shirt was blown away and blood was trailing from his shoulder down his arm.

"Impressive that you survived that boy," Onoki spoke. "But you're struggling to just stand at the moment. You're not longer a threat." Zaku growled and started staggering towards the Tsuchikage.

Before Zaku could attack, a series of glowing snakes came up from behind and sunk their teeth into the boy's neck. Zaku let out an agonizing, almost human, scream as chakra started surging wildly out of the point of impact. Onoki's eyes narrowed quizzically. Zaku's features slowly started changing back to normal as his curse mark receded back to its inactive state. Zaku's hair hung limply around his face, and he struggled even more to stay standing. Finally, the boy let out a tired sigh and fell backwards, hitting the ground with a gentle thud.

Behind Zaku stood Dosu, who was also a bit worse-for-wear. His jacket was tattered and his right sleeve was completely gone, revealing his Melody Arm. His hair was even more disheveled than usual, and his mask was torn a bit on the upper edges.

"You blew up your castle to try and get rid of us eh?" Dosu shook his head, getting a few pebbles and dust out of his hair. "I'd venture to guess you're running low on chakra. Being old and all your reserves can't be as good as they once were right?"

"Do you have a point or are you just rambling?" Dosu looked up, wiping away some dirt off his cheek.

Onoki turned his head, hearing the sound of many chirping birds. Sasuke held his Chidori high above of his head, screaming as he was planning to ram it down the Tsuchikage's throat. Onoki quickly moved back and kicked Sasuke across the face with all his might. The injured Genin flew across the rubble, slamming his back into a rock.

Hinata attempted to strike Onoki from behind, only for the old man to spin around the attack. He grabbed Hinata's wrist and pulled her forward. The Hyuga heiress stumbled and then was quickly pushed by a blast of wind from Onoki.

Onoki turned his head, ducking under one of Crow's blades. He quickly formed a cube of dust and launched it forward. Crow moved out of the way, narrowly avoiding the jutsu. Onoki shot forward towards Kankuro. The puppeteer smirked as a wave of bugs emerged in front of him. Onoki spun around to the right, moving past the wall of bugs. Kankuro gasped before the Tsuchikage flew forward, slamming his bald head into his side. The puppeteer screamed as he flew to the side, smacking his head against a rock.

The Tsuchikage turned his head and darted upward as a few gusts of wind and swarms of bugs came towards him. Forming a spherical oval of dust, Onoki hurled it at Temari and Shino. The two Genin scattered, leaving themselves open. Onoki shot down, slamming his fist into Shino's face. The young Aburame smashed into the ground, leaving a small crater beneath his body. Onoki shot towards the left, right towards Temari. The Suna kunoichi raised her fan up to defend herself. Onoki tore through the fan and slammed his elbow into Temari's stomach. The kunoichi cried out and fell to her knees, blood coming out of her mouth as she coughed.

Onoki watched Temari for a second before receiving a solid punch to the face. The Tsuchikage flipped back twice before straightening himself to defend against Kakashi. The masked Jonin threw a kick, which Onoki flew above. Kakashi scowled as he spun around on his foot before throwing a punch. Onoki ducked under that and moved to strike Kakashi. Before he could land a hit, something stopped the Kage. Onoki turned his head, seeing Dosu hanging onto one of his scarves.

The Tsuchikage's eyes widened in fury before turning to Kakashi who socked him across the face. Onoki fell to the ground, hitting with a groan. Kakashi raised his hand, lightning forming in the palm of his hand. Raising his hand up, the Jonin prepared to finish Onoki. The Tsuchikage shot forward on the ground, flying between Dosu's legs. The Genin looked down in shock before his arm was pulled through his legs, causing the boy to spin around and slam on his back. Onoki continued forward, dragging Dosu with him, and wanting to put as much distance as possible between himself and Kakashi at this point.

Suddenly, Rin popped around a nearby rock, her hand glowing brightly with chakra. The Tsuchikage's eyes widened as Rin swung at him. Onoki flew over the attack, having to spin forward in the process. Rin cut through his scarf, causing Dosu to roll to a stop. As Onoki straightened out, he looked forward, seeing a series of paper bombs set up on a pile of rubble he was heading towards. Rin turned her head, a smirk on her face.

Sakura made a hand sign and let out a sharp breath, setting off the paper bombs and engulfing Onoki in a firestorm. The young kunoichi let out a sigh of relief before staggering out of cover. Rin had bandages, hardened using chakra, around Sakura's midsection to help keep her upright.

Dosu quickly moved towards his teammate and put an arm around her back to help her. Sakura put her arm around Dosu's shoulders and leaned on him. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Sakura murmured. "How's Zaku?" The two Genin looked over at their teammate, who was now sleeping soundly. Dosu and Sakura both couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

Kakashi watched the two conscious Genin as Rin walked up next to him. "Clever little plan. Did you set up the paper bombs or did Sakura?"

"Sakura did. I was surprised by how many bombs that girl had." Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck, shifting on one foot.

"She does seem to be in favor of blowing things up doesn't she?" Rin smiled in agreement, remembering back to the Chunin Exams in the young Genin's match against Shikamaru. Kakashi's eye suddenly widened before he turned around, startling Rin. "Oh you have got to be kidding me…" Rin gasped and turned around as well.

The flames from Sakura's paper bombs parted, swirling ferociously around Onoki. The Tsuchikage's clothing was scorched and torn in many places. A few areas were burned on his body as well.

Sakura and Dosu turned, both gasping in fear at the sight of Onoki floating out of the fire. "You shinobi…are very irritating. I should've learned a long time ago never to underestimate Konoha shinobi. Especially the daughter of the Mountain Smasher." Sakura started trembling under the Tsuchikage's glare. When she first saw the man, she didn't think much of him. But now, even though she was twice as tall as he was, the man was the most terrifying person Sakura ever faced.

"Rin," Kakashi whispered. "I only have enough chakra for one more lightning blade. We have to make this count."

Onoki snapped his head towards Kakashi, who stepped back in fear. The old man vanished and reappeared in front of the Jonin. Kakashi gasped before Onoki grabbed him by the throat and shot upward. Rin snapped her head up and gasped in shock.

The Tsuchikage squeezed Kakashi's throat with all his might. The Jonin realized that trying to kick him was out of the question, so he opted for punching. His fists hit Onoki's face, but the Tsuchikage simply glared at him. Suddenly, Onoki stopped, turned upside down and flew as quickly as possible towards the ground. Kakashi's eyes were horrified, realizing what was about to happen. Onoki released Kakashi and let him fall to the ground at breakneck speeds. The masked Jonin screamed as he forced himself to flip around and smashed on his back. The force of the impact was more than enough to knock Kakashi out cold.

Rin, Dosu, and Sakura snapped their heads towards the Tsuchikage who slowly descended to the ground. Rin readied herself against the Kage, knowing she hadn't the faintest chance in hell unless she got lucky.

"Sakura," Dosu whispered. "I have to help Rin sensei. Think you can stand on your own two feet for awhile?"

"What the hell are you going to do against him," Sakura questioned, her tone frightful. "He's a Kage, he took out most of our team and Kakashi sensei out in no time flat!"

"I've got a secret jutsu I've been working on for this mission. I think it could help Rin, but I wanna make sure you'll be alright first."

"Idiot," Sakura growled, feeling the urge to smack Dosu upside the head. "If it can help us survive then use it!" Dosu nodded and slowly moved out of Sakura's arm and walked up next to Rin. _'Whatever you got planned…please let it work…'_

"I can give you an opening," Dosu whispered. "But I need to make sure that you have something that can finish this guy off."

"I have something in mind, but-,"

"Just be ready for it…" Dosu grabbed his left sleeve, which was only tattered slightly. He pulled it up, revealing a strange device that was a deep purple, almost black. Across the device were a few white serpents, opening their mouths around what were holes similar to those on Dosu's Melody Arm. Dosu made a hand sign and crouched down on one knee. The device on Dosu's arm started glowing brightly, almost burning with a chakra Rin could sense wasn't Dosu's. "Ninja art: Eight Branches Strike!"

Dosu leaned back and threw a punch forward. A stream of white, burning chakra flew out towards Onoki. The chakra soon took the shape of a serpent with opened jaws. The Tsuchikage scowled and moved out of the way. Dosu grunted as he threw another punch, releasing another serpent of chakra. Onoki looked down, seeing two white chakra serpents coming for him. The Tsuchikage hooked it left and the serpents followed closely behind.

Dosu concentrated, his eyes following Onoki carefully. Rin was staring in shock at the jutsu that this Genin was using. Looking down at Dosu, she started to wonder what else these kids could do. She knew that Zaku and Dosu were found by Orochimaru for his experiments, and later tossed out like garbage because they weren't successful test subjects. Is this some jutsu Dosu got from Orochimaru's experiments?

Dosu started panting, sweat pouring down his face, "Damn it, why can't he hold still?" Dosu used his chakra to make once serpent move around to cut Onoki off.

"Are you alright Dosu? What's wrong?"

"This jutsu uses chakra by the second," Dosu panted, using his serpents to try and draw Onoki closer. "Orochimaru put these weird tattoos on my wrist to allow me to use this jutsu, but I never could get it down right. Even now it's incomplete. A few months ago I couldn't even manage this, but I had help from Guy sensei. By learning how to open the Eight Chakra Gates, it helped my progression with this jutsu." Dosu groaned, wavering slightly but kept one eye focused on the Tsuchikage. "The good news is that if I wanted to I could use all Eight Strikes for this jutsu and not suffer the same fate as one who uses all Eight Gates. Problem is my damned…chakra!" Dosu's arm started flaring more wildly, a sign that his chakra was dwindling. "I'll get him in as close as I can, but the rest is up to you Rin sensei!"

"Got it, just don't overexert yourself Dosu, that's an order." Rin stepped away from Dosu and moved towards Onoki's direction.

Little did either know, a barely conscious Sasuke was watching Dosu use his secret jutsu. Jealousy and anger once again welled up inside Sasuke. _'They're just trash! Why do they have such power?'_ Sasuke groaned as he tried to get up on his feet. "Stupid…pieces of filth!"

The Tsuchikage launched a cube of dust at one of the serpent heads. The jutsu hit, but it did nothing to affect the snake of pure chakra. Dosu moved one of the serpents around to Onoki's right, trying to hit him from the side. The Tsuchikage grinned and waited until the last possible second to dodge, causing the two serpents to collide. Dosu smiled under his mask as he watched the two serpents create a massive explosion on impact. The blast was brilliant and blinding, engulfing Onoki and the surrounding area in light.

Sakura gapped in awe, looking down at her teammate. "Dosu…when did…?" The masked Genin panted heavily, sheets of sweat pouring down his face. The boy groaned lightly as he fell face first into the ground. "Dosu!" Sakura limped towards her teammate and knelt down next to him. "Dosu, are you okay?"

"Just fine," Dosu replied with a strained tone. "Just…can't move any part of my body. I should be fine after a few days of sleep." Sakura giggled at her friend before looking to where the blast was.

Rin quickly rushed and jumped around the rubble to get to the newly formed crater caused by Dosu's jutsu. She looked down, seeing Onoki's smoking body lying in the center. The medic let out a light sigh before looking back in Dosu's direction. "Looks like I didn't need to finish him off after all…" Rin turned her head slowly to look back at Onoki, but she yelped as her legs were knocked out from under her. She heard and felt a snap, causing her to cry out in pain before she hit the ground.

Sakura and Dosu both looked over, seeing Onoki grab a handful of Rin's hair to keep her up. The Tsuchikage was breathing heavily, completely furious at all the trouble his opponents were giving him. Rin was moaning in pain, both from the broken leg Onoki gave her by ramming her full force, and from the Tsuchikage pulling her hair. Onoki roared as he threw Rin with all his might. The medic hit a rock, bounced off it and spun around before hitting the ground and rolling to a stop.

Sakura trembled in fear as she saw Rin's body shake lightly. The kunoichi turned her head to Onoki who had his sights set on her and Dosu. Sakura's whole body shook in fear as Onoki floated towards her.

'_This is crazy. What kind of person is he? I-I'm going to die!'_ Sakura looked down at Dosu who was scowling at Onoki behind his mask. The kunoichi looked back up at the Tsuchikage, whose fury was beyond that any Sakura had ever seen before. She closed her eyes and turned away, _'This is it…I'm not going to make it…'_

'_All I need is for you to promise me that you'll be safe.'_ Sakura's eyes widened in shock. Her uncle's words before coming on this mission went through her head.

'_Don't show them fear Sakura,'_ Rin's voice ordered whenever they first arrived to the village. The young kunoichi daringly looked up at Onoki, a look of confusion and shock replacing her fearful expression.

"_I promise I'll be safe Uncle Higure…"_

"_Just be sure to keep that promise," Higure whispered, patting Sakura on the head. "I'm sure your parents would kill me if you died at such a young age."_

"That's right," Sakura whispered. Dosu looked up at his teammate in confusion. Sakura slowly rose up to her feet, eyes hidden by her disheveled hair which covered most of her face. "I promised…I promised him that I'd be safe."

"What're you prattling on about little girl," Onoki snapped.

"You hurt my friends…" Images of Sakura and Dosu chasing Zaku through the streets of Konoha in their earlier days came to her mind. Her team sitting at their secret spot, watching the sunset glimmering off the lake also flashed through her head. "You hurt my teacher…" Sakura remembered back to all the various training lessons with Rin. She was always so patient and kind, even if Sakura would hit a wall with something she didn't know. "Please…just let this all go. Nobody has to die today…"

Just then, a group of Iwa shinobi of various rankings surrounded the rubble that was once the Tsuchikage Palace. Onoki's frown hardened as Sakura continued to stare at the ground, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding ninja.

"Oh this isn't going to end well…" Dosu stated, his eyes looking at as many shinobi as he could.

"What do you mean 'nobody has to die?' You all were the ones who attacked me in case if you forgot! You all are the ones that are going to kill me since I have connections with Akatsuki! I have no choice but to break this pact I made with Danzo for the safety of my village!"

"It's not for the safety of your damn village," Sakura replied, her voice soft but sharp.

Kurotsuchi ran out of an alleyway, stopping just at the edge of the rubble to see her new best friend standing across from her grandfather.

The Iwagakure High Council, escorted by a group of shinobi, appeared on the other side of the rubble, watching curiously as their Tsuchikage squared off against a little girl.

"You're afraid. You don't want to die, so you're going to break your allegiance to Konoha. If you do that, it'll spark a war, and there will be countless casualties for both sides. You didn't win last time, and you can't win this time. Konoha is stronger than ever, and so are our allies." The Iwa shinobi all looked to one another as they listen to the girl's words. "Once Konoha finds out about your dealings with Akatsuki, there's a chance Lord Danzo won't kill you. He could just ask you to step down as Tsuchikage."

Onoki laughed in the girl's face, "You obviously don't know the leader of your own village! He killed the Third Kazekage for disloyalty instead of asking him to step down! What in the world makes you think he wouldn't do the same to me?"

"You're the leader of Iwagakure," Sakura replied quietly. "If it means your village and your people would be safe…isn't it worth the risk? You know no good will come if you betray us. Do you really value your life that much?"

"She's right grandpa," Kurotsuchi shouted. All eyes turned to the Iwa kunoichi as she approached. "Starting a war will only end badly for the village! You're the one who always told me the wellbeing of the village comes before the wellbeing of oneself. It's the philosophy you've taught for generations to shinobi, and countless men and women have sacrificed themselves for the village."

"You dare speak such treachery," Onoki questioned.

"It's not treachery," Kurotsuchi shouted, tears welling up in her eyes. "I do love you grandpa…and I wouldn't want to lose you. If you talked with Danzo yourself, went to the village to talk to him about what's going on, then this all can be resolved peacefully! We don't have to end this with violence!"

"The people of Iwagakure realize that dying for our freedom is better than living as Konoha slaves!"

"As I recall dear Tsuchikage…" All heads turned to the High Council, more specifically, Mao. "It was because of you that we're slaves of Konoha to begin with. You started a war with one of the major powerhouses of the world after failing to invade the Land of Wind, and it came at the price of our freedom! You have lost your way. You are more concerned about yourself than the state of the village!"

"Traitor!"

"Look at what you've done! You're battling children, and you've destroyed the Tsuchikage Palace, a monument that was the oldest building in the village! It was built by the hands of the First Tsuchikage, our founding father, and you destroyed it in an attempt to kill a group of children!" The Iwa shinobi looked to each other once again, unsure what they should think. "You were the student of Mu, the Second Tsuchikage, the _greatest_ Tsuchikage in history! It was because of him we were led to such a high pinnacle in the shinobi world, rivaling the Land of Lightning and Fire separately! Because of you Onoki, we're now slaves of Konoha, claiming that it was a way to avoid total genocide! And now you wish to break that alliance and doom us all to death to save yourself? You're a hypocrite, and not longer qualified to be Tsuchikage!"

The murmurs of the shinobi started to grow louder, making Onoki feel uneasy. "Fools! You honestly have so little faith in your village that you think we can't hold our own against Danzo's alliance? You're all weak willed parasites if you don't believe in your village to survive!"

"Grandpa," Kurotsuchi whispered, tears running down her cheeks.

"How can we have faith in the village when its leader is corrupted and selfish," Mao questioned. "You used Akatsuki, you used a rogue organization to carry out a few covert tasks for you. And now you're will to throw all of our men and women in the way so that you can cling to a few more years of life! It's over Onoki! Step down now!"

"You can burn in hell," the Tsuchikage growled, glaring daggers at Mao. "Konoha has oppressed the village long enough! It's time we took arms and revolted against them!" The Iwa shinobi looked back and forth between each other, nobody saying a word. They weren't sure how to feel, seeing as how a group of kids with two Jonin put their Tsuchikage in such a state.

"Maybe he is losing it," one shinobi whispered.

"A little punch-drunk," a kunoichi muttered. "He couldn't beat a few kids, how're we supposed to take on a village of these guys?" Onoki's head started spinning as he heard his people's whispers of doubt all around him.

The Tsuchikage finally had enough. He screamed at the top of his lungs, dust swirling around him in all his fury. All whispers were silenced and all eyes were on Onoki. The Tsuchikage aimed his hands at Sakura, dust swirling around into a cone like before. The Iwa shinobi all gasped and shouted in fear, throwing down their weapons before running for cover. One left a sword clattering right next to Onoki. Sakura's head snapped up, gasping lightly. Her head snapped back down as she felt something around her ankle.

Dosu had his hand around Sakura's ankle and his eyes on Onoki, "I need to borrow a bit of chakra, thanks!" Sakura was more than willing to give Dosu her chakra. The masked Genin pulled his arm back and with all his might screamed at the top of his lungs while throwing his fist forward. A white serpent flew out from Dosu's arm and towards Onoki.

The Tsuchikage launched the dust cone, only for it to disintegrate against the serpent's head. The snake opened its mouth and roared before slamming itself into the ground as Onoki started to fall back. The blast threw Onoki into a boulder, slamming his head against the rock before falling flat on his face.

Dosu released Sakura's ankle, letting out a soft sight before his body went limp again. Sakura nearly fell over, putting her hands on her knees to catch herself before she caught her breath. She was also running dangerously low on chakra herself. The kunoichi looked up and started to walk towards Onoki who was already getting up on his feet.

"You…this isn't over!" Onoki put his hands together, forming a cube of dust between him and Sakura. The kunoichi stopped, gasping again in shock. "Take another step and you're dead girl!"

Sakura took in a small breath, focusing her chakra into her hands. She felt the chakra spark on her fingertips, forming the chakra scalpel. Sakura started walking forward confidently. Onoki screamed as he launched the cube of dust forward. Sakura started running towards the dust, cringing as she placed a hand on her ribs. She pushed past the pain and pulled her arm back. With a swing and a cry, Sakura sliced through the cube of dust and continued towards Onoki. The Tsuchikage's eyes widened in shock before he tried to form another object out of dust hastily. Sakura pulled her arm back, ready to plunge her chakra scalpel into the Tsuchikage's small body for hurting her friends. Suddenly, a figure put themselves between Sakura and Onoki. The pink haired kunoichi stopped, her hand mere inches from Kurotsuchi's face. The Iwa kunoichi was crying, and the look in her eyes showed that she was torn.

"I'm sorry Sakura-chan," Kurotsuchi murmured. "I can't let you do this. He's my grandpa…I…I have to give him a chance." Sakura slowly lowered her arm, a look of remorse for her friend in her eyes. "If there's any chance Konoha could let him live…I have to make sure he gets it…"

Sakura's arms dangled limply by her sides, a tired, but warm smile on her face, "I understand Kurotsuchi…"

"Thank you," the Iwa kunoichi sobbed. Kurotsuchi stepped forward and hugged Sakura as tightly as she could. Looking as though she might collapse any minute, Sakura wrapped her arms around Kurotsuchi who sobbed on her shoulder. The pink haired kunoichi closed her eyes, wanting nothing more than to rest.

The surrounding Iwa shinobi watched as the two kunoichi embraced each other. Many of them whispered to each other, wondering how someone from Konoha could be such good friends with Iwa, and why they would spare Onoki at Kurotsuchi's request.

Sakura smiled, darkness slowly taking over. The darkness was pushed away by a sudden piercing through her stomach, followed by a light gasp. Sakura turned her head, seeing Kurotsuchi's eyes wide with shock as blood ran down the corner of her mouth. The Konoha kunoichi cried out, stepping back as she truly processed the pain. A blade was sticking out of Kurotsuchi's stomach, the tip of which had stabbed an inch or two into Sakura's gut as well. The Iwa kunoichi fell to her knees, holding the blade that was jutting out of her gut before turning around. Her grandfather, Onoki floated above her, staring at Sakura.

"Grand…pa…" Kurotsuchi coughed, blood flying out of her mouth. "W…why…?" The kunoichi fell on her side, eyes slowly closing.

Sakura held her stomach, using her limited medical ninjutsu to close the wound. She looked down, seeing Kurotsuchi's fallen form lying on the ground. Sakura's eyes widened before she turned to Onoki. Her mind could hardly process what had happened. Finally, Sakura's anger built up before she lowered her head.

"How…" She looked up at Onoki, eyes as hard as steel, "How could you do that to her? Your own granddaughter! She stopped me from killing you and you stab her?"

"She gave me an opening," Onoki replied. "Kurotsuchi sacrificed herself so that I could take you out myself!"

"She was saving you, you fucking idiot!" Sakura's whole body burned in anger. She focused on nothing but Onoki, determined to kill him no matter what.

"I'm surrounded by an army of ninjas, do you really think that you can touch me?"

"After such a sight Onoki," Mao exclaimed, his eyes also horrified with the Tsuchikage's actions, "I doubt that these people would want to help you!"

"It's the duty of a shinobi from Iwagakure to put their life before the village! That's what Kurotsuchi did! Her sacrifice will be the beginning of our revolt against Konoha! We will rise up and strike Danzo down!"

"You're an IDIOT! You're outnumbered and outmatched! And Kurotsuchi wasn't sacrificing herself for the village: she was sacrificing herself for _you_! Her grandfather!" Tears started rolling down Sakura's face. The people of Iwa looked in awe as a girl from Konoha was shedding tears over one of their own. A few shinobi started tearing up themselves. "You're a selfish, heartless old bastard! No matter what, I swear I'm going to kill you!"

Sakura ran forward, pouring all of her chakra into her hand to form a scalpel. Onoki formed a cube of dust while gathering more. He launched the first which Sakura easily sliced through. The kunoichi tripped and stumbled from the pain of her ribs, distorting her chakra flow. She looked up, seeing Onoki launch another cube of dust at her. Sakura fell forward, rolling under the cube and getting close to Onoki.

The Tsuchikage scowled, attempting to use his dust style again. Sakura pulled her arm back and threw her fist forward. She summoned her chakra into her fist, trying to form a scalpel. However, she didn't have enough time as her fist connected. Something strange happened though. It felt as if Sakura's chakra exploded out of her fist when she hit Onoki's face. Sakura heard and felt bone crunch and break under her fist as the Tsuchikage went flying. The kunoichi gasped, watching as the tiny Kage smashed through countless stones before finally embedding himself into a rock, arms outstretched and face frozen in broken horror. Slowly, Onoki fell forward, hitting the ground with a dull thud.

Sakura panted heavily, looking on in shock at what she had just done. She looked at her fist, which shook from the sudden, unfamiliar chakra surge. Sakura knew she was strong when she got angry, but nowhere near that strong.

A light whimpering caught the kunoichi's attention. Sakura looked up, seeing Kurotsuchi slowly moving. "She's still alive," Sakura shouted. Without wasting another moment, Sakura ran up and knelt down next to her friend. "Kurotsuchi, can you hear me?" Her fellow kunoichi whimpered, hands clutching the sword in her stomach. "I'm going to have to remove it…" Sakura mentally cursed herself as her arms felt weaker than limp noodles.

"We can help." Sakura looked up, seeing a few Iwa shinobi crouching around her. "What do you need us to do?"

"U-um, hold her down and remove the sword." The two Jonin nodded to each other. Sakura looked up, seeing the other people of Iwa helping the others as well.

"Are you ready," one of the men asked. Sakura snapped out of her trance and nodded.

One of the Jonin held Kurotsuchi in place while the other one grabbed the sword. In one swift movement, the Jonin pulled the sword out of Kurotsuchi. The kunoichi screamed in agony, clutching the man in front of her desperately. Sakura quickly put her hands around the wound and started to heal.

A kunoichi Jonin and a male Chunin helped Rin over towards Sakura. They set the older medic down next to Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi looked up at Rin who smiled at her. The two medics nodded to each other and started healing Kurotsuchi.

Kankuro groaned, holding the side of his bleeding head as an Iwa Chunin asked if he was okay. Temari was being tended to by a couple of Iwa medics, but she insisted that she was fine. Baki walked up with a couple of Jonin, watching his two students as they got up.

A few Chunin helped Hinata awaken and get on her feet. Shino sat up, denying any offer of help, but thanking the ninja regardless. Sasuke refused anyone helping him as he forced his body up off the ground. Kakashi took the hand of an Iwa Jonin to help him to his feet. The masked Jonin dusted himself off before thanking the Iwa shinobi.

A pair of Chunin got Dosu on his feet, putting one of his arms around their shoulders to help carry him. Zaku was woken up by a Jonin who helped him to his feet.

All of the shinobi gathered around, watching as Sakura and Rin healed Kurotsuchi. All the Iwa shinobi felt sympathy for the girl. She was known around the village for her upbeat attitude and strong determination, as well as her amazing abilities. She believed in the village as much as any other Iwa shinobi present, but she also loved her grandfather. Asking her to choose between the two was something no shinobi in the village could ever bring themselves to do.

'_Come on Kurotsuchi,'_ Sakura prayed. _'You can beat this…'_

The Iwa kunoichi moaned softly, her eyes slowly opening. Sakura smiled, tears of joy welling up in her eyes. The people of Iwa cheered in joy as Kurotsuchi sat up, looking dazed and confused. Sakura looked at the ground with worried eyes. Kurotsuchi turned her head, looking at her pink haired friend.

"What happened…?" Sakura lowered her head, using her hair to hide her eyes. Kurotsuchi's face lit up as she remembered and then fell in anguish. "Oh…"

"Kurotsuchi…I'm sorry," Sakura apologized. The Iwa kunoichi wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye then hugged her legs close to her chest. "I know there's nothing I could ever do to have your forgiveness, and I probably don't deserve it. But I am sorry for what I had to do…" Kurotsuchi sniffed, wiping away the last of her tears before turning to Sakura.

"Don't be…" The pink haired kunoichi gasped in shock. Kurotsuchi laughed a bit, wiping the corners of her eyes, "If anyone stabbed you to get to me, I'm sure I'd beat the shit out of them too." Kurotsuchi gave a saddened smile, but a reassuring one for Sakura. The Konoha kunoichi leaned forward and hugged her friend to support her. Kurotsuchi put her arms around Sakura, embracing her tightly as she started sobbing into her shoulder.

"Let this mark the beginning of something new," Mao spoke up, stepping forward. All the shinobi looked up at the councilman. "Sakura Haruno, daughter of Satoru Teki, a man who killed hundreds of our people during the war, befriending the granddaughter of the previous Tsuchikage. Kunoichi from two different villages that hate one another found friendship in each other. Is our allegiance to Konoha so bad my friends? Kurotsuchi-chan seems to have found a friend worth dying for in their village. Our oppression from Konoha came from Onoki's hatred. If we don't try to start anew, we'll end up just like Onoki. We must change, Iwagakure must change. We must begin anew, start over as the new Iwagakure, a proud village that can hold its head up high as it use to!"

Silence loomed over ruins of the Tsuchikage Palace. One kunoichi started clapping her hands together slowly. The surrounding shinobi turned and looked at her, but soon joined in. Soon enough, all the Iwa shinobi started applauding for their new beginning. Sakura and Kurotsuchi looked around, realizing that everyone was cheering for them. The two kunoichi were the symbol for a new truce between Iwagakure and Konohagakure.

Kakashi carried Rin who started clapping as well with a proud smile on her face. Kakashi huffed, also smiling underneath his mask. Hinata, Sasuke, and Shino all had brooding expressions on. Shino finally pulled his hands out of his pockets and started clapping. Hinata and Sasuke shot a glare at their teammate, which went ignored. Hinata scowled then started clapping a bit. Sasuke simply refused to. Zaku and Dosu both opted for cheering and whistling loudly.

"WOO-HOO," Zaku shouted, slapping his hands together forcefully, "WAY TO GO LADIES!"

"YOU GO GIRLS," Dosu added loudly. Sakura blushed a bit, laughing as she looked over at her teammates. Kurotsuchi smiled at the two stooges before waving at them. The kunoichi from Konoha turned to her Iwa friend and smiled. Kurotsuchi quickly hugged Sakura again and smiled softly.

"Three cheers for these two," Zaku screamed. "Hip, hip!"

"HURRAY," the crowd cheered. Sakura laughed, releasing Kurotsuchi to try and cover the blush on her face.

"Hip, hip," Dosu continued.

"HURRAY!" Kurotsuchi rolled her eyes while Sakura shot a glare at her teammates.

"Hip, hip," Rin jumped in.

"HURRAY!"

**

* * *

Ugh, uber cheesy with that ending. I seriously couldn't think of anything else. Maybe it's because I'm finishing this late at night :/ Who knows?**

**Anyway, I hope you all aren't too upset about me killing off Onoki, or making him a D-bag in the end what with stabbing Kurotsuchi. Just like to point out that in the canon, Onoki was a hard-headed ass who put the village first until Gaara did the Jesus-no-jutsu on him. So basically this Onoki pre-Gaara useth the Jesus-no-jutsu.  
Also, random side note, Dosu's Eight Branch Strike is based off of Orochimaru's Eight Brand Tranformation type thing that he used against Itachi in the canon. Next chapter will be slow, cause good god I'm running out of action-y things. I'm wanting to write some plot progressing stuff now!**

**Anyway, I won't keep you all with the author's note. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and hopefully it was believable enough for ya. Next chapter AWAY!**


	25. Fourth Tsuchikage

Word had spread quickly about the death of Onoki of Both Scales at the hands of a kunoichi Genin. The teams responsible for bringing him down eventually returned to their respected villages. In the case of Sakura and her teammates, they had to go to the hospital for their more severe injuries. Now Iwagakure was in the process of having to elect a new leader, having it narrowed down to two candidates: Kitsuchi, the son of Onoki, or Mao Katsu, the High Councilman. Danzo wanted nothing more than to be involved with the election, but the people of Iwagakure refused. Normally the Hokage would just stick a few spies in the village, but with the invasion of Takigakure, having to reinforce Konoha's presence in the Land of Waves, searching for princess Koyuki and the Akatsuki, Danzo didn't want to thin out of his ranks any further. Once a leader was elected, all of the higher end representatives of the Alliance were to meet in Iwagakure for a party to celebrate the coronation of the Fourth Tsuchikage.

Akatsuki had also heard about Onoki's assassination, and the election of a new Tsuchikage. Knowing that the result of the election could change the power of Danzo's Alliance, the leaders of Akatsuki gathered.

"We can't let a Tsuchikage in that'll just be another lapdog for Danzo," Nagato stated.

"But we also can't assassinate whichever candidate would fall into that category," Tsunade replied, crossing her arms under her breasts. "Doing so would only strengthen the belief that we're terrorists. What do we know about the candidates so far?"

"Kitsuchi, the son of Onoki is one of them. He believes strongly in his village, and served in the previous war. Everyone knows that he'll die before he lets any harm befall the village." Konan handed the file to Nagato before holding up another one, "Mao Katsu. He's a member of the Iwa High Council, a very respected member at that. He was a very talented young shinobi who had countless successful ops in his lifetime. He worked his way up through the ranks, before getting a position on the council. Seems like he's rather power hungry if you ask me, but the people of Iwagakure love him. He's all for establishing better relations with Konoha, to strengthen their village. The people apparently are eating that up."

"But why," Nagato asked, handing the file to Yahiko.

"Because one Konoha Genin befriended Iwagakure's little mascot: Kurotsuchi." Yahiko turned a page on Kitsuchi as the other Akatsuki leaders looked at him. "Kurotsuchi is the granddaughter of Onoki and the daughter of Kitsuchi. She's lovable, upbeat, and gets along with everyone in the village. Sound familiar?" Nagato and Konan smirked, thinking of their blonde Jinchuriki. "As it turns out, Kurotsuchi, like Naruto, befriended Sakura Haruno." The smirks on Konan and Nagato's faces vanished in a flash. "Kurotsuchi threw herself in the way of Sakura's attack to prevent her from killing Onoki. Sakura stopped, but Onoki used that as an opportunity. He struck through his granddaughter to get to Sakura."

"Heartless bastard," Tsunade murmured bitterly. Even if Sakura was a Konoha shinobi, it still disgusted the Sannin that Onoki would strike through her granddaughter to finish an opponent.

"Sakura finished Onoki regardless, apparently somehow using the same chakra technique that gives Tsunade here her super strength. After that, she worked desperately to save Kurotsuchi, despite having next to no chakra. Another Konoha medic helped her, and saved Kurotsuchi. Sakura alone changed the minds of an entire village by herself."

"So what do we do about this? If we can't kill a Kage candidate I hope you're not going to suggest we kill a little girl," Konan said, leaning back in her chair.

"Of course not. There's a party that'll be thrown in celebration of the Fourth Tsuchikage's election. We need to infiltrate that party to get more information. All of Konoha's higher-ups will be there, and I'd venture to say that the teams responsible for taking down Onoki will be there too. So at all costs we must make sure that Naruto doesn't-," Yahiko was cut off when there was a loud crashing sound outside the door. Itachi flew into the room, panting heavily with sweat running down his face.

"N-Naruto was eavesdropping."

"Damn him!" Yahiko rose from his chair, slamming his hand on the table.

"I'll take care of him," Konan replied, immediately scattering into a large group of papers. Yahiko scowled, growing tired of how Konan babied Naruto.

* * *

The Kyuubi Jinchuriki rushed towards the exit, only to be cut off by a wall of hardened paper. Naruto cried out as he smacked face-first into the wall and fell on his rear. The paper swirled around, quickly forming Konan's body. The blonde groaned as he rubbed his face before he gazed up at an angry looking Konan. Naruto chuckled then gave a small wave.

"Heya Konan-chan…"

"Get up." The Jinchuriki mumbled to himself before rising onto his feet. "Why were you eavesdropping on our meeting Naruto?"

"I was curious…plus you wouldn't have told me about Sakura-chan anyway."

"You're damn right we wouldn't have told you!" Konan sighed, stopping herself before she said something she'd regret. Naruto was looking off to the side, arms crossed over his chest with a sour expression on his face. "Look Naruto, I know you care about that girl, but this isn't the time to be running into a room full of high classed ninjas and screaming 'I love you Sakura!' Danzo and half of Konoha know your face now. We need information right now. If Iwagakure gets a Tsuchikage who works with Konoha willingly then that just makes this battle that much harder for us."

"But it's not fair. I can use the transformation jutsu and-,"

"There are gonna be sensor ninjas. Even a rookie sensor could pick up your chakra a mile away." Naruto scowled angrily, clenching his arms tightly. "I know this doesn't seem fair Naruto, but this is war. You've got to put your feelings aside for a moment to help us stop Danzo." The blonde's eyes fell to the ground, softening a bit. "I promise that I'll go personally to check up on Sakura if that'll help you." Naruto's eyes brightened as he looked up to his senior.

"Seriously?"

"You bet," Konan replied with a warm smile. Naruto grinned and started laughing. Relieved that the boy was back to normal, Konan ruffled Naruto's hair. The blonde groaned and pried his head away, causing Konan to laugh. She knew he hated when anyone messed up his already messy hair.

"Wait a minute Konan-chan…Sakura has seen you before though. What if she sees you at this party?"

"I'm a high ranking kunoichi thank you very much. I can watch that girl all night without her even knowing I'm around. Besides, I'm setting up an elite team of spies to help infiltrate the village that night."

"Seriously?"

"The best of the best," Konan said, winking at Naruto. "Now go cause mischief for someone else."

"Can do Konan-chan." Naruto turned and started walking away from the exit. Konan smiled in relief, watching the boy to make sure he didn't pull a fast one. After making sure Naruto was once again pacified, Konan vanished in a flurry of papers.

* * *

Kabuto Yakushi walked up the pathway of a cliff, wearing a cloak and hood to cover himself from the sandy winds. He looked upward to a structure sticking out of the mountain he was moving up before continuing forward.

After a few long minutes, Kabuto reached the door of the complex and entered. Inside it was almost an entirely different world. Everything was shimmering and bright and the air was thick with the scent of many different flowers. Kabuto's eyes scanned the room for a moment before resting his eyes on the sight of a heavily wrinkled old man. The man watered a plant down before looking up, his brows twitching in surprise.

"Oh, Kabuto Yakushi eh? What brings you to this neck of the desert?"

"Business I'm afraid Lord Ebizo. The great Kazekage, Sasori, requested that I give you and your sister a message." Ebizo opened his mouth to reply, but was quickly cut off.

"What's this about now?" Kabuto and Ebizo looked to the back of the room, seeing a short woman entering. "Oh…it's you Kabuto. What does Sasori want now? Doesn't he know how to leave his dear old grandmother alone?"

"Lord Sasori doesn't wish to ask for anything, Lady Chiyo, but your presence at the coronation of the Fourth Tsuchikage." Chiyo narrowed her eyes, hiding her hands in her over sized sleeves.

"Old Onoki finally retired," Chiyo mused.

"No, not at all." Kabuto grinned slyly as he pushed his glasses up his nose. "As it turns out, the investigation into Iwagakure wasn't a waste of time. Two teams from Konoha, led by Kakashi Hatake, and a team from out village led by Baki found out that Onoki had made dealings with the rogue organization known as Akatsuki. The teams took Onoki down, and Iwagakure is ready to accept their place in our alliance."

"That seems like a strange twist," Ebizo murmured. "The people of Iwa loved Onoki. To hear that he died, I'd think they would've revolted."

"They likely would have if Onoki hadn't stabbed his own granddaughter to take down a Konoha Genin." Chiyo narrowed her eyes in disgust.

"Why were Genin sent on this mission?"

"It was to make sure Iwagakure didn't catch wind as to what we our true intentions were. It was a covert operation, I'm sure you understand don't you Lady Chiyo?"

The old woman huffed before she glared at Kabuto, "What if we say no to this little invitation?"

"I'm afraid Lord Sasori won't take no for an answer. He gives you both enough leeway in your retirement, letting you both live up here by yourselves, never knowing if you're plotting to betray us. Do you have any idea how much Lord Sasori has to deal with because of Danzo's paranoia? Two retired siblings that were renowned across the world, expressing their dislike of Danzo and our other allies, and you both have connections in countries that aren't in our Alliance."

"That's Danzo's fault for being so paranoid," Chiyo snapped. "Tell that old fart to get the stick out of his butt and stop bothering my grandson. If he has a problem with me he can tell me to my face!"

"This may be the perfect opportunity to do so Lady Chiyo," Kabuto replied calmly. Chiyo huffed, turning around to exit the room. "Plus I'm sure your dear apprentice would love to get out a bit." Chiyo stopped in her tracks, her anger boiling up in an instant. The boy had a talent for pissing the retired puppet master off. "You keep her cooped up in here all day long, only to have her go to the village to run an errand here or there. You've isolated her from the world you know."

"My apprentice has nothing to do with this Yakushi. I'd still that tongue before I tear it out of that twisted head of yours."

"I'm just saying that maybe she'd like to get out and see a village that isn't Sunagakure? Maybe if Lord Sasori isn't too busy they can both catch up. It has been an awfully long time since either of them got to talk to one another." Chiyo turned around slowly, glaring daggers at the smug Kazekage's assistant. "In case if you change your mind, I'll leave the invitations right here." Kabuto raised up three tickets and placed them on the table. "I'm sure that Lord Sasori would love it if you could show up. It was a pleasure seeing you both again Lady Chiyo, Lord Ebizo." Kabuto raised his hood back over his head before opening the door.

Chiyo scowled as she snapped her head away from the door. Ebizo remained silent, watching his sister before turning to the tickets. He reached for them, only for one to seemingly come alive and jump off the table. Ebizo gasped as he watched the invitation fly off the table and move past a surprised Chiyo. The two Honored Siblings turned their head to the entrance to the other room as the invitation flew into the hand of a young woman. She wore a red shirt with short sleeves that were puffed out and was cut short to expose part of her stomach and lower back. Her pants were blue, and also puffed out like the sleeves of her shirt. Her hair was a light purple, swept back with the exception of her right eye being covered by her bangs. She turned around, examining the invitation as she walked into the other room.

"Izumi," Chiyo barked.

"I'll be in my room Chiyo sensei," the young Izumi replied, not taking her eyes off the invitation. The old puppeteer scowled before following after her apprentice.

"Izumi, hold on a moment!"

"I'm done with my chores and training Chiyo sensei, I'd like to rest now," Izumi replied, her voice even and calm.

"We're not going to that, so get any thoughts of it out of your mind right now!"

"I wouldn't ask you or Ebizo-sama to come," Izumi said, looking up from the invitation. "I on the other hand would like to go to Iwagakure. It would be rude not to accept an invitation from the Kazekage himself."

"Stop playing with me," Chiyo snapped. "You're not going to Iwagakure, and that's final!" Chiyo attached a chakra string to the invitation and tugged. Izumi tightened her grip, not letting go of the piece of paper. Chiyo's eyes narrowed at her apprentice who simply stared calmly back at her. "Izumi…"

"Please Chiyo sensei…" Izumi's eyes softened a bit and her tone dropped. "I don't ask you for anything, you know that."

"This is just a way for Sasori to manipulate us. I don't want to put you in his reach to be taken and made into a tool."

"I can deal with Sasori," Izumi snapped. "I haven't seen anything beyond the village. This is a chance for me to see something new, without Sasori trying to manipulate me back into his grip. Besides, he can't do anything at a party with all of the high ranking individuals in the Alliance there. We just have to show up and act polite, just like with Sasori's coronation right?" Chiyo sighed, lowering her gaze to the floor. She always regretted that the girl had a persuasive tongue on her.

"I'll think about it, but I don't want you to get your hopes up." A smile formed across Izumi's beautiful face, causing Chiyo's resolve to waver a bit more.

"Thank you very much Granny." The old puppeteer chuckled as Izumi turned and walked into her room.

* * *

Sakura groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. She raised her arm up to block the light from her eyes as she sat up, wincing once a stabbing pain came from her ribs. She slowly straightened her back before resting her hands on her legs. Sakura turned in her bed, throwing her legs over the end of her bed to get out. She stopped when she heard her door open and her uncle entered, carrying a tray of food in his hands.

"Oh, you're awake," the older man stated, sounding as though it were strange. "I brought you breakfast."

"So I see," Sakura replied, giving a light chuckle. Higure walked over and sat the tray on Sakura's bed. The kunoichi slowly inhaled the various scents, a smile forming across her face before she turned to her uncle. "You didn't have to do this you know."

"Rin said you were to stay in bed as much as possible. I'm not one to argue with that woman. Or…any woman for that matter."

"You argue with me all the time!"

"You live in my house oh-smart one," Higure replied, poking Sakura's large forehead. Sakura stuck her tongue out before grabbing a fork. "I'm making some tea right now. I'll bring it up when it's ready." Higure kissed the side of Sakura's head before leaving the room.

A few minutes later, after finishing breakfast, Higure entered the room again with a pot and a cup. "Jeez, you eat fast."

"Picked that up from Dosu," Sakura said, nodding her head. "He eats like you wouldn't believe. I still haven't seen his face because of it." Higure smiled as he started pouring tea into one of the cups. "Hey Uncle Higure…"

"Yes?" The older man held out the cup to Sakura. She grabbed it gently with both hands and blew on the top to cool the tea.

"Are you mad at me…?" Higure simply shot one of his eyebrows up questioningly. Nervously, Sakura took a drink of tea and moved her eyes away from her uncle.

"Why…would I be mad at you…?" Sakura sighed before pulling the cup away from her lips. Higure removed the tray from Sakura's bed and sat it out of the way before taking a seat next to her.

"When I came home…you didn't lecture me or anything. I thought you'd be upset that I was hurt, tell me to be more careful or something." Higure smiled before putting his arm around Sakura's shoulder.

"You're a Genin with very limited experience sent on an S-rank mission to assassinate a Kage in the heart of his own village. I'm just happy you came back alive…and with all your limbs attached." Sakura smirked, nudging her uncle in the side lightly. "Any other concerns you have?"

Sakura took a small sip of tea as she thought carefully for a moment. She lowered her now empty cup before leaning on her uncle's shoulder. "Are you coming with me to the coronation in Iwa?"

"Wouldn't you rather take a date or something?"

"Zaku and Dosu both got invites, so did Rin, and all of Kakashi's team too."

"Well that still leaves Rock Lee." Sakura jerked her head up and elbowed her uncle forcefully in the gut, causing him to cry out and let out a pained laugh. Sakura grabbed her pillow then started beating Higure with it. The older man continued to laugh before getting out of Sakura's bed to distance himself. "Easy, EASY tiger!"

"I will get out of this bed to hurt you," Sakura threatened. Her pillow then folded over in a rather pathetic way, taking away from her threat.

"Yeah, I'm sure thousands have fallen before that pillow." Sakura threw the pillow at her uncle, causing a sharp pain to surge through her body. The kunoichi cringed, holding her side in pain. Higure quickly moved next to his niece and lied her down on her back. "Good one genius."

"You started it," Sakura replied in pain.

"If I agree to go with you to Iwa, will you promise not to hurt yourself again?"

"I promise."

"Good. I'm going to go get your pain meds. Do not go anywhere while I'm gone alright?" Sakura glared at her grinning uncle. "It's a joke, learn to take one dear." Higure left the room, leaving the door open a bit. In less than a minute he was back and placed two pills in Sakura's hands. The young kunoichi popped them into her mouth and swallowed, despite the fact that her pain had already dulled to tolerable levels. "So what's the dress code for this shindig exactly? Sweats and a T-shirt?" Sakura paused to glare at her uncle for a few seconds before taking a drink of tea. "Again: joking. Why the hell does everybody take me so seriously?"

"Go get something nice to wear before I take you shopping," Sakura snapped. Higure, with a frightful look in his eye, sprung off of Sakura's bed and exited her room quickly. Sakura smiled before taking another drink of tea. She knew he hated shopping more than anything else in the world. _'Sucker…'_

* * *

Konan leaned back in her chair, feet up on her desk as she read through her files. So far she hadn't found a single member of Akatsuki that could go with her to the coronation. There were so many variables that she didn't know how to pick. Konan looked up when she heard someone knocking on her door. Nagato smiled at her before entering the room.

"How's it going?" Konan groaned in response as Nagato sat on the other side of her desk. "That bad huh?" The blue haired kunoichi huffed at the obvious statement. "Would it help if I told you Yahiko is going out on a mission?" Konan's eyes snapped up quickly. "He's going to meet with Jiraiya sensei's group and get Zabuza and Obito to help him. They're apparently going after some priest or something." Konan raised her brow questioningly. "I know, I don't know the exact details. Though Yahiko did say he wanted me to go with you to the coronation." Konan opened her mouth to protest, for obvious reasons concerning Nagato's eyes, but the redhead quickly raised up his hand to stop her. "I know what you're going to say, but before you do, watch closely." Nagato shifted his hand into a proper seal. Without saying or breathing a word, Nagato's Rinnegan slowly faded into a normal looking pair of sky blue eyes. Konan's jaw dropped in awe while a smile crept onto Nagato's face. "Do you like it? It's a form of transformation jutsu. My Rinnegan is still active, but my eyes look normal right?" Unable to form words, Konan simply resorted to a nod. "This, and some hair rearrangement should be a good enough disguise to fool old Danzo. Yahiko said I'm to be your um…escort to the party. He didn't say what our title should be. We obviously have to be of some importance, but not _too_ important. I'll let you work on that though okay?" Konan nodded, still flabbergasted by Nagato's eye changing jutsu. "What else…what else…oh, do you need any help with recruiting? Deidara said he wanted to talk to you. Is that good with you?" Again, all Konan could do was nod. "Alright, I'll send him your way. I'll let you work now. Just needed to run that by you Konan." Nagato waved then exited the room.

The blue haired kunoichi blinked rapidly, confused as to what just happened. Konan shook her head before she noticed the build up of heat in her face. She yelped in surprise, despite the fact nobody was around, and put her hands over her cheeks to cover her blush.

"Konan-chan!" The blue haired woman screamed in fright, her arms flailing about as papers flew up into the air. Konan blinked in surprise for a moment before she realized her chair was leaning on two legs. In a flash, Konan and her chair crashed to the ground. Naruto gave Konan a perplexed look as he stood on the ceiling. "What're you doing?"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHAT AM I DOING? You're standing on the ceiling of _MY_ office and you're asking _ME_ questions!"

"Hey calm down, I'm just here with Deidara-kun to ask you a question."

"De…Deidara?" The blonde artist then straightened his back, standing on the ceiling next to Naruto with his long hair touching Konan's desk. Konan growled in anger, feeling a strong urge to smash the heads of the two blondes together. "What do you two want?"

"Well, my man Naruto and I were wondering if we could be included in this little shindig you and Nagato-san are going to, hm."

"I told Naruto no already, and I'm going to tell you: no."

"I know you told Naruto no. I want to go." Konan's eyes narrowed dangerously at the artist who grinned and held up his hands defensively, "Before you say no. I can hang out in the air and keep an eye out for anything suspicious alright? Plus there's this Jonin from Sunagakure, Ayane. She's been on a few scouting missions in Iwa from the early years of their joining the Alliance. She and I together can find a way to sneak you all inside without tipping off anyone, and we can keep watch over the party." Konan's eyes, still narrowed skeptically. "It's Iwagakure. My home village. I was the student of old man Onoki, and I know the coronation will take place at Mu's Temple. Trust me: I know more about that place than anyone else in Akatsuki. Plus, if things go wrong, wouldn't you want someone who could create a diversion. Like say, oh, I dunno, lots and lots of explosions everywhere? That's where this guy Shibuki from Kirigakure comes in. He's skilled at setting up traps, which he can do in case we need to make a quick escape. You can't lose!" Konan sighed, leaning back in her chair before putting her feet back up on the desk.

"I have your word that you won't do anything stupid? Like say, blow up a building in Iwagakure to ruin our cover?"

"Yes ma'am," Deidara answered before jumping off the woman's desk. "Come on Naruto, you're going to help me with my art!"

"Alright, keep your pants on," Naruto snapped. The young blonde turned to say goodbye to Konan, but Deidara grabbed the back of the boy's Akatsuki jacket and yanked him forcefully out of the room.

* * *

In another two days, the Fourth Tsuchikage had been elected. All of the Alliance's top leaders and followers moved to Iwagakure to attend the coronation. The new Tsuchikage was to remain unknown until everyone arrived, and the coronation begun. Konan's team, consisting of herself, Nagato, Deidara, Haku, Ino, the Chunin from Kirigakure Shibuki, and the young Jonin kunoichi; Ayane from Sunagakure. The team had to move quickly in order to make it to Iwagakure in time. Luckily for them, Deidara was more than capable to form enough clay birds to get them to Iwagakure in no time.

Sakura looked out of the window, staring out at a river that they were passing over. "Damn thing!" Sakura turned her head to Zaku who was trying to get a tight fitting, high collared robe to loosen up. "Why are these things so damn tight?"

"Just deal with it," Dosu murmured. The boy still had his mask on, and his hair was straightened up a bit, but he also looked annoyed by the fact he had to wear something formal. Sakura smiled at her friends before looking to her right where her uncle was sitting. He too seemed bothered by having to wear long, baggy robes to this event. "How many of these carriages are we taking to Iwagakure anyway?"

"One for the four of us, one for Danzo, Orochimaru, Kakashi, and Rin, and another for Sasuke, Shino, Hinata and her father," Higure answered. "There are around twenty ANBU escorting us, with Orochimaru's Serpent Five as extra protection for himself and the Hokage."

"Doesn't that seem like overkill," Zaku asked.

"You don't know how many people hate Danzo," Higure murmured smugly. "Plus with the threat of Akatsuki, who knows how many extra people are planning to take him out. That, and the old man is just paranoid."

"So if Orochimaru's Five are here with us, then what's going on with the invasion of Takigakure," Sakura wondered.

"Currently, Amegakure and Konoha forces are setting up a perimeter around the village to make sure that nobody gets out while working on a plan to infiltrate successfully. Anko is currently in charge of the whole operation while Hanzo attends this coronation." Higure leaned back in his seat and looked out the side window. "I bet your sensei really wishes she went with you guys to Iwa right about now."

* * *

Chiyo huffed in annoyance as her carriage moved down a rather bumpy hill. That was one of the many bad things about moving through the Land of Stone. Despite the elder's growing annoyance, Izumi couldn't pry her eyes away from the window. The girl's eyes were sparkling in amazement and wonder at the new land. Chiyo didn't understand the big deal. Instead of a bunch of a lot of sand, they're now surrounded by a bunch of rocks and temples. Still, the old puppeteer wasn't going to rain on her apprentice's parade. Luckily it was just the two of them and Ebizo in the carriage. Baki and his students had one for themselves, as did Sasori and Kabuto.

Izumi's face brightened more so, something Chiyo thought would be impossible by this point, as she laughed and waved to somebody out of the window. Chiyo smirked then pulled the curtain back to see a group of kids running alongside the carriage, laughing and flailing their arms about. Chiyo couldn't help but chuckle and wave back. Suddenly, a Suna Jonin landed in front of the kids, knocking one of them down. Izumi gasped while Chiyo's eyes hardened. The Jonin raised his hand to strike the child.

"Izumi," Chiyo snapped as her apprentice jumped out of the carriage. Izumi threw one hand out to the Jonin and then spun around quickly. The Jonin cried out as he was suddenly pulled back by an invisible force. Izumi landed on the ground as the Jonin slammed hard next to her. Chiyo jumped out of the carriage just as it pulled to a halt.

"They're just children," Izumi stated, her tone scolding the Jonin. "You were going to hit a child for what reason?" The Jonin rose up to his feet, pulling out a katana from his back with a fierce scowl.

Izumi prepared herself to fight the man in front of her. Chiyo scowled as she rushed to stop the fighting. "Enough." All eyes turned to the voice, the Jonin gasping lightly. Sasori was standing outside of his carriage, looking at the confrontation with little interest. "Izumi, I would appreciate it if you didn't attack my guards." The young woman simply glared at Sasori. The young Kazekage then turned his attention to the Jonin, "And loosen up a bit. After all: they are just children."

The man sheathed his katana before bowing to the Kazekage. Sasori stared at the two for a moment before ducking back into his carriage. The Jonin jumped back into formation around the carriages while Izumi glared at him from behind.

Chiyo forcefully grabbed Izumi's arm and yanked her back, "Get back in the carriage now!" Izumi gasped lightly, snapped out of her trance as she was dragged by Chiyo. "Honestly, attacking one of your fellow villagers. I thought I taught you better Izumi!"

"You did," Izumi snapped, wrenching her arm out of her master's grip. "But there's no justifiable cause for harming a child. Especially when they mean us no harm. This Alliance has made Sasori and everyone else paranoid." Chiyo huffed in agreement before stepping to the side to let Izumi in the carriage first.

"You think he's bad," Chiyo murmured as Izumi crawled in. "Danzo is a hundred times worse." The old puppeteer got in after her apprentice and closed the door.

* * *

After days of traveling, the various branches of the Alliance gathered together in Iwagakure. Mu's Temple, a monument built in honor of the Second Tsuchikage, was where the coronation was being held. Many people mingled on the floor, while the village leaders, Danzo, Sasori, Hanzo, Orochimaru, and the two Tsuchikage candidates, Kitsuchi and Mao, sat at the head of the room at a rather long table.

Sakura looked around like a meek child at all the fancy looking, and high status individuals. Behind her, Zaku was humming merrily as he picked nearly four of everything off the buffet with Dosu behind him, showing about one fifth of what Zaku had on his plate. Her teammates walked past her, Zaku still humming happily, and headed towards their table. Sakura rolled her eyes at the amount of food both boys had before following after them.

Zaku sat next to Shino on one side and Dosu on his other. Sakura sat next to Dosu and Sasuke. The pink haired girl looked over at him, a faint blush forming across her cheeks. Across the table, Hinata was picking her teeth with her fingernail as her eyes scanned the room. The Hyuga heiress's eyes finally settled on Sakura.

"Aren't you going to eat Haruno," Hinata asked.

"No, I'm not that hungry," Sakura replied, her eyes watching Hinata cautiously.

"Well I am. Care to escort me to the buffet?" Sakura opened her mouth, not really sure what to say until Hinata grabbed her arm and jerked her out of the chair.

At a nearby table, Higure sat with Hiashi Hyuga, Kakashi, and Rin. He honestly felt out of place at the table. Hiashi was the head of the most powerful clan in Konoha, while Kakashi and Rin both spoke to each other. What about, Higure didn't know.

"So, Haruno." Higure's eyes turned to Hiashi, his expression having bored written all over it. "How's retirement treating you?"

"I can't complain I suppose. How're you fairing after the loss of Hanabi?"

"I'm managing," Hiashi murmured. "Hinata is a bit…anxious to find a new female friend now after Hanabi's kidnapping." Higure's brow raised before his eye caught Sakura being dragged across the room by Hinata. Hiashi shifted his eyes to the two kunoichi and chuckled, "I fear for your niece Haruno."

"You and me both," Higure murmured, turning in his chair with a look of disbelief on his face.

Hinata stopped in front of the buffet, grabbing a plate and handing it to Sakura. The kunoichi sighed and accepted the plate. Hinata took one for herself and quickly placed an eggroll on it. "You did a well…" Sakura's eyes flickered for a moment before turning to Hinata. "Against Onoki I mean. You managed to beat him and nobody else did. Not even Kakashi sensei."

"W-well there was no way I could've managed on my own," Sakura stated with a small laugh. The laugh was mostly in disbelief. Was Hinata Hyuga being nice for once in her life?

"Still…I do have to acknowledge that much. You outdid me this time Haruno, but that doesn't mean I'll let you win next time!"

"For my sake I hope there won't be another time I have to fight a Kage," Sakura murmured. Hinata smirked before placing a small piece of pork on Sakura's plate.

"Amen to that," Hinata replied.

* * *

Nagato, with his hair pulled back into a high ponytail with his hair framing his face, and Konan, hanging onto Nagato's arm with her hair swept back and two hairpins holding back her bangs, entered the party. They looked around for a moment, in order to scan the room so they knew who to avoid.

"We should get a table," Konan whispered, tugging on Nagato's arm a bit. The Rinnegan user nodded then slowly walked further into the snake-pit.

"Can I get the young couple an appetizer?" Konan jumped a bit as she and Nagato turned their heads, seeing a familiar young face smiling at them.

"Haku," Konan whispered sharply. "Don't scare me like that!"

"My apologies madam. Should I find you both a seat in the house first? Follow me." Haku walked into the crowd. Konan narrowed her eyes before following Nagato.

"He's enjoying this way too much," Konan murmured. Haku waved his arm over an empty table, far away from prying eyes. Nagato pulled the chair out for Konan, to which she smiled at him for. Haku flapped a cloth out before placing it in Konan's lap as Nagato took a seat.

"Ino is posing as a waitress," Haku whispered. "She'll be sure to make a scene if she senses anything out of the ordinary." Konan nodded in acknowledgement. Haku leaned back, his back straightening up like a board before he spun around to Nagato's side. "Is there anything I can get you two to start off? Drinks perhaps, or maybe a flower for your beautiful date?"

Nagato chuckled nervously, while Konan merely glared daggers at Haku. "I-I'll just take some water," Nagato answered.

"Very good sir, and you milady?"

"Your head on a silver platter," Konan seethed.

"Coming right up!" Haku spun around sharply then walked off. Nagato turned to Konan, trying not to explode in laughter. The blue haired woman simply glared at her childhood friend angrily before turning away from him.

"Ladies and gentlemen," a voice called out. All chattering and talking was silenced when a member of the Iwa High Council stood in the center of the room. "We are here to crown a new Tsuchikage, the Fourth Tsuchikage! Our village had an election between Onoki's son Kitsuchi, or Mao Katsu, the High Councilman." Both men stood up from their seats and stared out into the audience. "Our people have spoken…it gives me great pleasure to be the first to introduce the Fourth Tsuchikage: Mao Katsu!"

The room went up in applause as a smile crept on Mao's face. He turned to Kitsuchi and shook the man's hand. Kitsuchi smiled, congratulating Mao for his victory. The new Tsuchikage walked to the center of the table, between Danzo and Sasori.

"It is with a great honor that I accept this title, this responsibility. Our previous Tsuchikage, Onoki of Both Scales, the great Fence Sitter, was a great Tsuchikage. I…may have said some things to him before his death, things I didn't entirely mean. He was a great leader, and he will be sorely missed. However, I do mean what I say now: Iwagakure needs change. We have been oppressed, getting the short end of everything in this Alliance, and why you may ask? Why?" Mao started walking towards the right. "Because, we didn't accept being apart of this Alliance. Why? Because we were forced into it against our wills. But I ask you: what is so wrong with allying ourselves with Konoha? With Sunagakure, or with Amegakure? What is so wrong I ask you? Is Konoha tyrannical, is Konoha and its Alliance evil? Or are they trying to bring about an age of peace?"

Soft murmurs moved through the crowd. Danzo kept his wary old eye on Mao. Orochimaru simply chuckled before taking a sip of wine, finding the emotion behind the Tsuchikage's speech amusing.

"Before Danzo's Alliance, before the formation of the ninja villages, the world was complete and utter chaos! Tribes, clans, everything and everyone fought against each other! Blood was shed all around the world on a day to day basis! How did we solve this? Unification! Konoha was created with the union of the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan! That's how the villages were founded, through unions! Through alliances! But still it isn't enough. Rogue clans and organizations like the Akatsuki run rampant, threatening to ignite the fires of war again! Only through unification, only through combining our powers together can we stop any further world wars from breaking out, only then can we stop countless lives from being lost! We ninja have shown that we need more unification before absolute peace is obtained! So I ask you my friends: is it so wrong to help Danzo and his Alliance gain another step towards peace? Iwagakure, could be the cornerstone to bring the world together. I intend to do my part in creating a new, peaceful world for everyone! So I ask you my people: will you help me?"

Without a second lost, the crowd of Iwa shinobi exploded in cheers and applause. Mao smiled in admiration for his people and joined in the applauding. Even Kitsuchi clapped his massive hands together after the speech was over.

"I thank you people of Iwagakure," Mao shouted, raising his hand to calm the roar of the audience. "Continue to enjoy this party! Eat, drink, dance to your heart's content!" The crowd started applauding again as Mao moved towards his seat.

"That was some speech," Hiashi murmured, clapping softly for a moment.

"It certainly was," Kakashi agreed.

Music started to play as couples started moving out onto the floor. Rin's face lit up as she grabbed Kakashi's arm, "Come on."

The masked Jonin groaned as he was lifted from his seat, "Must I?"

"You must," Rin replied as she dragged Kakashi to the dance floor.

"Have fun you crazy kids," Higure called out with an over patronizing tone. Kakashi shot a glare back at the older man before facing Rin. Hiashi chuckled before turning back to Higure.

"Perhaps it's time we older gentlemen joined in the party." Higure's eyes snapped to Hiashi in an instant. The retired shinobi straightened his back and cleared his throat.

"Hiashi-sama, I'm flattered, but I don't swing that way." The Hyuga Clan leader rolled his eyes before rising from his seat.

"I was referring to me dancing with my daughter, and you your niece."

"Oh…that's much less creepy I suppose." Hiashi chuckled again as Higure rose from his chair.

* * *

Konan was dangerously close to killing Haku. After being convinced by Nagato to a dance, they had to do it while the young ice user was watching and grinning like an idiot. She had the urge to walk over and smack the grin off his girly looking face. Unfortunately for her, fortunate for Haku, Nagato had a tight grip on Konan so she wouldn't run anywhere.

"Konan," Nagato snapped. The blue haired woman shook her head and looked up at her friend. "You're supposed to be keeping your eyes on everything _but_ our teammates."

"He keeps staring," Konan seethed.

"Ignore him. Mission, focus. We could be killed at any moment if let our guard down."

"Right, forgive me for not wanting to focus on the constant threat of death long enough to want to kill that annoying girly-boy who keeps GRINNING at us!" Nagato held on and pulled Konan back as she tried to turn around.

"Please focus." Konan mumble angrily as she continued to dance with Nagato.

Higure stopped for a moment, staring at the dance floor for a moment. Hiashi paused as well, turning to the retired shinobi. "Something the matter?"

"Tell Sakura I'll be over there soon if she wants to dance," Higure said, turning to Hiashi. "Please and thank you." He bowed his head before walking over to the dance floor. Hiashi raised a curious brow before continuing towards her daughter's table.

Nagato and Konan paused as the former was tapped lightly on the shoulder. A man with light brown hair and emerald eyes smiled at them both, "Mind if I cut in?"

"Oh, uh…not at all." Nagato turned to Konan, his eyes advising caution. The blue haired woman couldn't help but wonder where she had seen this man before. Nagato stepped away as Higure put an arm around Konan's waist and grabbed her hand gently. As soon as they started moving, the realization struck her.

"You're looking well," Higure said.

"You say that as if we've met before," Konan replied, trying to keep herself calm.

"We have remember? During the Chunin Exams, you were on the ground in pain and-,"

"What do you want," Konan hissed, tightening her grip on Higure's hand.

"To know that you're not going to do anything stupid here," Higure answered, his tone changing from soft to sharp in an instant.

"We're only here to gather information. We're not going to cause a panic unless we're discovered." Higure continued dancing, his eyes scanning the crowd. "You have my word nobody here will get hurt unless we're provoked."

"Is that boy here with you?" Konan's eyes drifted to Higure. "Minato's son I mean…"

"Naruto isn't here. There was no chance I was going to try and bring him to this. We sent him off with another squad to make sure that he stayed away from this."

"Too bad," Higure murmured. "I'm sure Sakura would've loved to see him again." Konan scoffed, turning her head to the side.

"Last time I remember she was ready to kill Naruto…"

"She's gone through some changes. I told her that Naruto's parents were old friends of mine. As well her parents' friends." Konan's head whipped towards Higure, a look of disbelief in her eyes. "True story. Minato was actually my best friend. Which brings up a question of mine…" Konan's eyes filled with caution as she lowered her head. "Naruto can use those chakra chains, just like her mother, he has her mother's clan name, and yet he doesn't know about her. Any particular reason for that?"

"Nothing that concerns you I'm afraid. You wanna know more, join Akatsuki. We have plenty of openings available."

"I'm afraid I'll have to pass," Higure replied with a smirk. He stepped back and twirled Konan around, much to her shock. The two stepped back into each other, Higure smiling cockily, "I'm retired you know."

"I don't understand you. You live in Konoha, your niece is a Konoha shinobi, and yet here you are, dancing with a woman you know is a member of Akatsuki. Yet you're not ratting me out to Danzo or setting me up into a trap."

"I'm retired," Higure repeated. He released his grip from Konan and spun around her. Higure placed a hand on Konan's stomach and lifted her hand up into the air, causing a blush to creep on her face. "I'm an uncle first. As long as you're not going to hurt Sakura we have no problem." The two took a few steps to the left before Higure spun Konan back around. "Now, that's not to say Sakura's the same way. She'd probably rat your ass out in a minute."

"I'll remember that," Konan replied, slightly flustered by the elaborate dancing. "Um…how is Sakura doing by the way?" Higure raised his brow questioningly. "I promised Naruto's I'd see how she was doing."

"You were planning on dancing with me," Higure pondered curiously.

"No, I was going to watch her to see how she was doing." Higure twirled Konan around before she fell back on his arm.

"Not weird at all," Higure stated before lifting Konan back up. The blue haired woman spun around back into a normal dancing stance. "She's doing fine. Her ribs are messed up from her battle against Onoki, but she's doing fine. A little too fine. If it wasn't for her I wouldn't be at this party." Konan chuckled as the song ended. "Well, I thank you for the lovely dance miss." Higure put one hand behind his back and the other on his stomach before bowing. "I hope that we meet under these pleasant circumstances again."

"That might be asking a little much Higure," Konan replied with a small laugh. The brown haired man smirked before shaking the woman's hand. The retired shinobi turned around and walked away, much to Konan's relief. Nagato walked up, standing next to his friend while keeping his eyes on Higure. "Don't worry. He's fine," Konan whispered.

* * *

Izumi sat at her table with Chiyo and Ebizo, smiling and staring in awe as she watched the people dancing smoothly. Saw a nearby couple and then started wiggling her fingers around in rhythm with them. Chiyo smirked, realizing that Izumi was pretending to control them like puppets. The girl was so easily amused.

"Why don't you get out there and dance Izumi," Ebizo asked. The young apprentice looked at Ebizo in shock while Chiyo shot him a scolding look. "There are plenty of handsome young men out there. I'm sure they'd love to dance with a pretty lady such as you."

"Lord Ebizo," Izumi laughed, putting a hand over her blush. "Don't say things like that. If somebody wanted to dance with me they would've asked by now."

"And they'd have to get past me first," Chiyo murmured, a sly smile forming on her wrinkled face. Izumi smiled at her master, knowing she meant that in good humor, before turning back to the dance floor.

Ebizo turned his head, someone catching his attention, "Hey sis, is that…" Chiyo turned to where her brother was looking. Shock came over Chiyo's face before she laughed.

"HARUNO!" Higure visibly flinched, nearly jumping out of his skin. Before he could turn to the sound of his last name, Higure was very forcefully and suddenly pulled towards the table by five chakra strings. The retired shinobi slammed into a chair that was turned around by Chiyo. "Miss me?"

"Oh…Lady Chiyo, how could I miss you—erm forget you?" Chiyo snickered, leaning back in her chair to put her feet up on the table. "Boy…when was the last time we saw each other again?"

"I poisoned you, and you destroyed my left arm."

"Right," Higure replied quickly, hoping to whatever higher power this woman didn't hold grudges. "So…what've you been up to?"

"Same as you: retirement. This is Izumi, my apprentice." Higure turned to the young girl who was eyeing him curiously. Izumi quickly turned away, a blush forming across her cheeks. "She's a natural puppet master. A few more years and she'll be decades ahead where I was at that age."

"Where'd you find her? I mean the purpose of retirement is to…well _not_ do things right?"

"I couldn't let talent like Izumi's fall into my grandson's twisted hands. Who knows what she might've went through had she fallen into his hands…" Higure turned to Chiyo, a curious look in his eyes.

"That's rather…outspoken of you Lady Chiyo."

"They can't do anything about it," the old woman spat out. "If they could or cared I'd be long dead by now."

"Please don't talk like that Chiyo sensei," Izumi whispered, her eyes still on the crowd. Higure and Chiyo stared at the young woman for a second before looking back at each other.

"Uncle Higure?" Said man turned his head, seeing Sakura standing over his shoulder. The pink haired girl bowed her head to the table before looking at her uncle. "Who are your friends?"

"Friend is such a strong word," Higure murmured before looking back at Chiyo. "This is Lady Chiyo and her brother Lord Ebizo. They're known as the Honorable Siblings in Sunagakure, and they're both very famous. Chiyo is the grandmother of the Kazekage Sasori."

"Oh," Sakura sputtered before bowing her head. "It's an honor to meet you milady."

"Raise your head up child. The floor shouldn't be graced with a face a pretty as yours." Sakura blushed as she raised her head back up, brushing her hair behind her ear. "So, you're Saiki's daughter eh?" Sakura's eyes lit up a bit before nodding. "You're the spitting image of her, child."

"You knew my mother?"

"Oh yes," Chiyo exclaimed, a twisted smile facing Higure. "I've encountered her before along with your uncle on the battlefield. I swear to you child, your mother was one of the best kunoichi I've ever faced. On the battlefield she was graceful and powerful. She never took her eyes off me. Hell," Chiyo started laughing, "I'm not even sure if she blinked! Your uncle was quite impressive too. Those two together, brother and sister fighting side by side nearly did me in." Sakura turned to her uncle who was scratching his cheek with his finger.

"You still almost killed me though you crazy old bat," Higure murmured. Chiyo laughed, smacking the table with her hand.

"True, but you did smash my left arm remember?" Chiyo lifted up said arm and flexed her fingers. "This is a puppet arm I had to get to replace it after that scuffle with you and your sister! See," Chiyo popped her arm off to demonstrate. Higure and Sakura's faces twisted in disgust as they leaned back. Chiyo laughed before snapping her arm back in place. "I remember you though, selflessly throwing yourself in the way of a blade for your sister," Chiyo added with a sly grin. "A blade you knew was dripping with poison. Luckily for you, Konoha had that Slug Queen back then."

"Does she mean Lady Tsunade of the Legendary Three," Sakura asked. Higure nodded once before smirking cockily at Chiyo.

"Luckily the Alliance has the antidote for your poisons mass produced for the battlefield so that it can be used as an effective weapon."

Chiyo huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "This damn Alliance has made my poison more of a toy than a weapon. With the mass production of an antidote, it's a wonder that Konoha and Suna's enemies haven't gotten a hold of the antidote as well."

"It's a rather wise idea actually," Izumi stated. "To mass produce both that is. If you have a small squad of soldiers that're outnumbered and outmatched, all they would have to do is inject themselves with the antidote that lasts up to five minutes in a person's system and then bomb the entire battlefield with poison. All you'd have to do is make sure that you kill everyone before the five minutes are up." Higure and Sakura gave a wide-eyed stare at the young puppet master who then chuckled nervously.

"Izumi is a very wise tactician," Ebizo murmured, nodding his head a bit. "Granted a sharp mind comes with being a puppet master, but she's even managed to out maneuver big sis here."

"Really," Higure exclaimed with a smug tone. "Now that's something I'd love to see Granny Chiyo."

"It's only been on occasion," Izumi replied, sounding a bit jumpy. "Chiyo sensei is a great teacher, and I have many years of training before I'm going to surpass her."

"It might be sooner than you think child," Chiyo murmured. "Higure, Sakura, you both do have my apologies for what happened to Saiki and Satoru. They were both fine shinobi, and were both taken from this world far too early."

"Thank you Lady Chiyo," Higure replied softly. "That means a lot coming from you."

"Yes," Sakura added, bowing her head for a second before remembering Chiyo's words and snapped her head back up, "Thank you milady."

"I apologize dear," Chiyo said softly. "Nobody should have to grow up without a mother and father." The old puppeteer looked to Izumi, whose eyes softened as they fell to the floor. "I've known far too many who lost their parents due to the conflicts of war. It's something that no child should have to go through. I fear that if war is started up again soon, that many more children will be orphaned."

"It's what comes with war," Higure muttered bitterly. "Adults fight the wars, but children are left baring the scars. That's what bothers me about Danzo's Alliance and his Wrath of Fire. They don't focus on healing the wounds of war left for the next generation to bear."

Chiyo chuckled before taking a sip of tea, "Still fighting for that Will of Fire that the First Hokage believed in?"

"Will of Fire," Sakura repeated in confusion.

"I've never heard of that Chiyo sensei," Izumi added, equally lost.

"It's not surprising," the old puppet master said. "It's something that Danzo would rather leave buried so that you children grow up believing his way is right."

"The Will of Fire is the belief that every shinobi must fight for his village, love, cherish, and believe in Konoha. But each person must also believe in their comrades, trust, and honor their friends. You fight as each shinobi before you has, and you fight _for_ the next generation. To make the world a better place for the generation after you, once you pass away. The Will of Fire was supposed to give you strength, passed down from the ninja before you. You inherit their hopes, their dreams, and their beliefs."

"Excuse me for asking uncle…but how is that different from Danzo's Wrath of Fire?"

"The Wrath of Fire," Chiyo began sourly, "Is a twisted version of the Will of Fire. Danzo would warp your mind to believe that they're the same, but in the end they're not. The Wrath of Fire, instead of fighting for the love and belief of your village, you fight for its honor and glory to increase its own power. Instead of fighting _for_ your comrades, you simply fight with them, and move on without sparing a single word if they die next to you. Each shinobi before you, is simply an obstacle you must climb over in order to achieve a higher level of power, and the next generation must climb over your body in order to become more powerful than you. With the Wrath of Fire, you're meant to believe that your strength came from learning from the previous generation's mistakes, and the next generation is supposed to learn from yours. You inherit nothing from them, only their power so that you may build onto it."

"You make it sound so evil," Sakura stated with a nervous laugh.

Chiyo smirked and then chuckled, "If it sounds evil then that just means you believe in the Will of Fire child." Sakura's eyes widened a bit, gasping lightly in shock. "Perhaps your uncle here passed down those beliefs to you. Or maybe…maybe it was your parents, Saiki and Satoru, who passed down their Will of Fire to you."

Sakura opened her mouth, unsure of what to say to the old puppet master. Higure's eyes drifted to his niece, the corners of his lips tugging at a small smile. "Excuse me…" All eyes turned next to Izumi, seeing Kurotsuchi standing in front of the table, wearing a beautiful light brown kimono. "I'm Kurotsuchi. I assume that you're Sakura's Uncle Higure right?"

"Yes I am," the retired shinobi said. "Sakura has told me a lot about you Kurotsuchi-chan."

"All good things I hope," Kurotsuchi replied with a smile. Higure chuckled and nodded. "May I steal Sakura-chan away for a moment?"

"Of course." The two kunoichi smiled at each other before walking away from the table.

* * *

Kurotsuchi led Sakura outside on a balcony overlooking the village. The young kunoichi leaned out on the railings as Sakura stood next to her with a curious look. "Is something wrong Kuro-chan?"

"I'm not sure. It's just…weird you know. Grandpa was the Tsuchikage my whole life." Sakura's eyes drifted down as her heart sank in guilt. Kurotsuchi turned to the Konoha kunoichi, realizing her mistake, "N-no, don't feel bad Sakura! You did what you had to. I'm not angry at you for what you had to do…"

"But I…I don't even know how I did what I did," Sakura murmured, looking at her hand. "I just suddenly felt a surge of power going through my fist. My chakra exploded out, and…and…" Tears started building up in the corners of the young kunoichi's eyes.

"Sakura," Kurotsuchi whispered. The Iwa kunoichi grabbed her friend and hugged her tightly. "I do miss grandpa. I miss him so much. But…I…he…I can't blame you for what you did. Whether I was ordered to or not, I would kill anyone who ever harmed you. You're my friend. My best friend."

"I don't deserve your kindness Kurotsuchi-chan," Sakura sobbed. "I'm sorry…I'm so, so sorry."

"Stop beating yourself up for it. The people, they loved my grandpa, they really did. But they were so tired of being oppressed by Konoha that they wanted change." Kurotsuchi leaned back, keeping her hands on Sakura's shoulders and offering her friend a smile. "My grandpa wasn't going to change. He always told everyone that no matter what happened Konoha would show us no mercy. But when people saw your kindness and consideration towards me when you didn't strike grandpa down…and when grandpa tried to cut through me to get to you…feelings of hope for change and doubt of my grandpa skyrocketed. A lot of people have said 'working for Konoha can't be any worse than working for a Tsuchikage who would kill his own granddaughter to win a fight against a little girl.' So…the people of Iwagakure are going to try and work with Konoha willingly instead of begrudgingly." Kurotsuchi grinned, moving her hands down Sakura's arms to gently squeeze her friend's hands. "I for one, can't wait."

Sakura sniffed, raising one of her hands to wipe away her tears, "Thank you Kurotsuchi-chan. I hope the best for you and your people…" Kurotsuchi hugged her friend again, which Sakura returned.

"Well, I've got to be going," Kurotsuchi said as she leaned out of the hug. "I may not be the Tsuchikage's daughter or granddaughter, but I still have to mingle."

"I understand. Tell my uncle I'll be in shortly." Kurotsuchi nodded then headed back to the party.

Sakura sighed, turning around to lean against the railing again. She did sincerely hope that Iwagakure would become a better place for their people now. Kurotsuchi was like a sister to her, and she wanted the best for her. A chilling breeze blew by, causing Sakura to shiver and look over to her left. To her shock, a man was sitting against the railing with his arms crossed over his chest, looking out into the party. Sakura stared at the mysterious man for a moment before realization hit her.

"Y-you're Tobi! That man in the Chunin Exams from Kirigakure!" A dark, cold chuckle escaped the man's lips.

"You're…half right Sakura Haruno." The man moved off the railing and turned his masked head to the young kunoichi. "Quite an impressive feat to defeat Onoki. Even I found trouble with that. You're quite the little lady. No wonder Naruto Uzumaki takes such fancy to you."

Sakura gasped lightly before her face hardened in a scowl, "What do you know about the village's Jinchuriki?"

"Only that you two have more in common than you think young one. Naruto Uzumaki is going to play a very important role in shaping this world's future. Your fate and his seem to be…entwined. You single handedly changed the fate of Iwagakure. But to what end is the question?" Sakura took a step back as Tobi took one forward. The masked man simply stared at the young girl, making her more and more nervous. Was he waiting on Sakura to say something?

"What do you mean Naruto and I are alike," Sakura finally questioned. "I'm nothing like that traitor."

"Don't be so quick to judge young one. You know that your uncle knew his parents, and yet you're not the least bit curious about them? Try asking Higure about Naruto's parents. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to tell you."

"What does this have to do with me? Why are you telling me all this?"

"As I said: Naruto Uzumaki is going to play an important role in the future of this world. I just want to make sure he's…pushed in the right direction. The direction I desire him to go down. You're my ticket for that Sakura Haruno."

"Excuse me." Sakura gasped, looking past the masked man to see her uncle standing behind him, turned slightly to the side. "You don't mind if I cut in do you?" The hole in Tobi's mask started to burn blood red, causing Sakura to gasp in shock.

"Of course not," the masked man replied, an ecstasy ridden evil in his tone.

Tobi spun around, throwing his arm at Higure's head. The retired shinobi blocked with his forearm, eyes widening in shock. The masked man spun back around, throwing his leg up which caused his robe to fly out. Higure ducked and swept his foot across the ground. To Sakura's shock, her uncle's foot passed right through Tobi's ankle. The masked ninja cackled madly as he threw his arm forward, a sharpened blade attached to a chain shooting out of his sleeve. Higure jerked his head to the side, nearly getting his eye gouged out. The retired shinobi grabbed the chain and yanked on it hard. Tobi stumbled forward before the chain snapped and slid out of his sleeve. Higure rose to his feet and threw all of his strength into a punch directed at his opponent's masked face. The fist passed right through Tobi, as Higure stumbled shortly after. The masked man grabbed the chain casually and gripped it tightly. The metal weapon tightened, catching Higure to keep him from falling to the ground.

"Your abilities have dulled in your twilight years," Tobi murmured.

"Things get better with age is what they say," Higure replied, his eyes shifting over his shoulder. The masked man chuckled coldly.

Tobi released the chain and turned around. Higure spun around, watching as his opponent darted past him. The retired shinobi cried out as he lashed the chain forward, realizing that Tobi was heading for Sakura. The young kunoichi moved to step out of the way, seeing that the chain was coming for her. Tobi's Sharingan burned brightly enough for Sakura to see. The sight of the dojutsu was more than enough to send chills down her spine. Sakura gasped, realizing that the chain was coming right for her. A pair of cold, leather gloves grabbed her shoulders, causing her to stop. The chain wrapped around Sakura and Tobi's body. The metal wrapping around her ribs caused Sakura to wince in pain. The masked man huffed as the swirls on his mask started to seemingly come alive. He would teleport himself and Sakura some place a little more private. Suddenly, he gasped when he felt a hand grab his shoulder as well. Tobi turned his head, looking back at Higure who was gripping him tightly. The man gave a dark chuckle once again, loosening his grip on Sakura a bit.

"Well…aren't you still the clever little devil?" Higure gripped Tobi's shoulder and raised the blade from the chain up to the back of his neck. "You just can't let me have my prize can you?" Tobi released Sakura, chuckling again. The chains fell to the ground as Tobi sprung backwards, passing right through Higure. The retired shinobi turned around, putting Sakura right behind him while Tobi distanced himself. "And here I thought you couldn't touch me without someone helping you."

"Serves you right," Higure snapped.

"You have gotten dull since we last met though. I took you a little too lightly in this case. I won't make the same mistake next time. I'd love to see you come out of retirement Higure. It could be just like old times, except you wouldn't have Minato or Saiki to help you." Higure scowled, flinching at the urge to attack. Tobi laughed, throwing his head back before focusing his attention back to the two Harunos. "Until next we meet…young Sakura." The mask came alive, swirling around and swallowing the man whole. And just like that, he was gone.

Sakura's breathing became heavy and labored. Not because of the fresh pain in her ribs. She knew very well that she might've died if it wasn't for her uncle. She then realized she had been gripping her kimono tightly enough that she could've torn it.

"Uncle Higure, I…thank you…"

"What did he say to you," the retired man snapped. Sakura stared up at her uncle, confused by his tone. "What did he say Sakura?" Higure turned, looking his niece in the eye. The look only spread more confusion and worries in Sakura's mind. Her uncle looked angry, worried, and relieved all at once.

"I…I don't know. He mentioned Naruto, and said that he was going to be important in the world's future o-or something. A-and he said our fates were…entwined I think. There were some other things but I…I…"

"It's alright," Higure whispered. The man pulled Sakura closely and hugged her with all his might. Sakura was now spiraling in a whirlwind of confusion. "We need to leave, and inform Danzo right now." The kunoichi looked up at her uncle's face. Before she could say a word, Sakura was being dragged back into the party.

* * *

Once back inside, Higure let go of Sakura once they got to Chiyo and Ebizo's table. The young girl looked at her uncle in confusion before turning to the two Honored Siblings. They both had a solemn expression on their faces. "Excuse me Lady Chiyo…" The old puppet master turned her attention to Sakura. "Do you…um…"

"I know that look on your uncle's face if that's what you're going to ask," Chiyo replied. "I won't pry, but in this case I would just do whatever your elders tell you." Sakura grumbled in confusion, turning her head back to where she last saw her uncle. To her shock, she saw Higure making his way towards Danzo's table.

"Wh-what's he doing," Sakura gasped. The Honored Siblings watched in silence while Izumi stared in curiosity.

Konan and Nagato watched as Higure approached Danzo. "I think it's time to go," Nagato whispered. Konan raised her hand, narrowing her eyes on the retired shinobi. He was either going to be a typical Konoha citizen, or a possible man on the inside. Nagato scowled before turning back to the Leader's Table, ready to pounce at a moment's notice.

Higure stood behind Danzo and leaned in next to the old Hokage's ear. "What is it," Danzo bitterly snapped.

"Madara Uchiha…" Danzo's eye nearly popped out of his head before sharply turning to Higure.

"You're sure…" Higure nodded once. Danzo leaned to his right, whispering to the Tsuchikage. Higure took a step back as the Tsuchikage rose to his feet.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm afraid that I must draw this party to a close," Mao called out. "I intend to start working first thing tomorrow morning, so I'll be needing my rest. I thank you all for showing up, but the party is over." The guests murmured and slowly rose up in their seats and headed for the exit. Nagato, Konan, Haku, and Ino all slipped out in the crowd, trying not to draw attention from anyone. Mao turned to Danzo, who also rose up from his seat, "Was that convincing enough Lord Hokage?"

"Yes," Danzo replied. "And as promised I'll inform you later."

"I just hope this party ended for good reason." Danzo nodded then quickly hurried away with his shinobi.

"Daddy!" Higure stopped and turned his head as Mao spun around. A young girl, no older than ten, ran up and hugged Mao.

"Well hello there my dear." Higure wanted to urge Mao to leave, but it wasn't his place to do so. He turned around and followed Danzo. "How does it feel to be the Tsuchikage's daughter?"

"Really cool!" A young woman walked up with a smile on her face. "So are you coming with us back home?"

"I'll be right behind you and your mother Niwa. You do as she says and go to bed when you get home okay?"

"Alright," Niwa murmured. The young girl hugged her father again before turning around and running back to her mother. Mao smiled at his wife who returned a grin.

After a few moments, everyone left room. Mao smirked then started walking down the steps one by one. "You certainly know how to clear out a room don't you?"

"I just couldn't believe it when I heard the truth," a new voice replied. "I never could've imagined that you would become Fourth Tsuchikage." Mao turned around, seeing a man sitting in his chair at the Leader's Table, leaning back in his chair with his feet on the table.

"You don't imagine anything. You simply plan everything don't you…Madara sensei?" The masked man chuckled before he slammed the other two legs of his chair onto the ground. "Are you here to check up on me? To make sure I don't become swayed by Danzo's ideals and betray you?" Madara made his way around the table, walking down the steps one by one as he kept his Sharingan focused on Mao. "Only an idiot betrays the world's most dangerous man."

"It's debatable who that could be," Madara replied.

"In my humble opinion, the world's most dangerous man would be you Madara." The masked man stopped in front of Mao, staring at him for a moment. The Tsuchikage stared back at his former sensei with a cocky smirk on his face and a tilt of his head. "You tell me jump, I say how high right?" Madara chuckled before patting Mao's shoulder. The masked man walked towards the exit while Mao watched him carefully. "Is there a reason you needed to see me Madara sensei?"

The masked man stopped then turned his head, "Just needed to make sure you still feared me Mao."

"Fear and respect are two different things," Mao snapped quickly.

"And I hold both in your heart and mind." Madara turned his body, becoming transparent in an instant only to reappear in Mao's face. The Tsuchikage's smile vanished, replaced by a hardened stare. Madara's Sharingan activated, but even then Mao didn't waver. The masked man continued to stare for a moment before chuckling and turning his head away. "You do well to hide it. But I can still see the fear in your heart. I'll contact you if I need you to do anything Mao."

"I'll be waiting sensei," the Fourth Tsuchikage stated. Madara took a few steps away from Mao before vanishing in a vortex from his own face. Mao smirked and chuckled before heading towards the exit.


	26. After Pary

On the border of the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Rice Fields, Jiraiya's team sat around a small clearing in the forest. Zabuza sat across from the 'slumbering' Koyuki, watching the princess carefully while everyone else was looking out in different directions. The Demon of the Mist didn't understand why he was responsible for watching the runaway princess while everyone else got to watch out for enemies to kill…or the reinforcements. Watching the princess turned actress pretending to sleep was like watching paint dry.

Hana turned her head before looking back over her shoulder, "They're coming."

"Who," Zabuza questioned, rising to his feet while grabbing his sword.

"The second squad," Hana replied.

"Oh…" Zabuza fell back onto his rear, narrowing his eyes in disappointment. Hana smirked before turning her head forward. Yahiko, Itachi, Naruto, and eight other Akatsuki shinobi coming out of the forest in the direction Hana was looking at. The young Inuzuka smiled before jumping down from the tree and following the others.

Jiraiya, Shizune, and Obito walked to the center of the clearing where they met Yahiko and the others. "Good to see you again Jiraiya sensei," Yahiko greeted.

"You're trading me one Uchiha for another, and a Zabuza for a Naruto," the Sannin stated with a mocking grin. "I wish I could say it was good to see you too Yahiko." The orange haired man chuckled before nodding to the shinobi behind him. Itachi, Naruto, and five other Akatsuki shinobi walked forward. Jiraiya chuckled and ruffled Naruto's hair as he walked by. The blonde groaned, batting Jiraiya's hands away before shooting him a threatening smile. "Zabuza, Obito, you two are with Yahiko now."

"Good," the Demon of the Mist murmured as he pried his sword out of the ground. "Anything is better than babysitting this spoiled princess." Koyuki lifted up her arm, raising her middle finger to the swordsmen. "Come on Blazing Sharingan!"

"I always hated that nickname," Obito bitterly stated as he walked behind Zabuza.

"Then what name do you like," Zabuza asked, looking back over his shoulder.

"Obito: the Copycat Ninja!" Zabuza groaned, rolling his eyes in frustration.

"You're going to get hurt one of these days…"

"Seriously, that's what I wanted my nickname to be. Danzo said it didn't strike fear into the hearts of my opponents! All I did was just copy people after I got my Sharingan! Oh man did it irritate Kakashi. This one time-," Zabuza groaned again, already getting annoyed with the chatty Uchiha.

"You're sure that things won't go wrong on your mission," Yahiko asked, turning to Jiraiya.

"As long as we can get to this 'Resistance' in the Land of Snow with the princess in our hands everything should go well," Jiraiya replied. "We could get new allies for Akatsuki, and ensure one more enemy for Danzo."

"Don't know why you're bothering," Koyuki called out with an aggravated sigh. "Doto is as ruthless as Danzo." The princess lowered her voice so that no one could hear her, "There's no point in opposing either of them…"

"We'll be fine. I have a friend at the docks who has a boat and can grant us safe passage to the Land of Snow. Sorry we couldn't have been more help. But just make this quick. After heading to the Land of Frost, our recent activity with the princess, and now you all having to go back into the country, odds are we'll be getting some unwanted visitors."

"We should just set up a base in the Land of Hot Water," Yahiko murmured. "It'd probably be easier." Jiraiya laughed as he slapped Yahiko on the back. The orange haired man bowed his head before turning around and following his squad.

"Alright boys," Jiraiya exclaimed. "Let's get to the port ASAP!"

"You got it Pervy Sage!" Koyuki got to her feet, sighing as she dusted herself off before looking at the rogues before her. "Hey, who's going to have to keep an eye on the princess?"

"You," Jiraiya replied, looking back over his shoulder with a grin on his face. Naruto's jaw dropped in shock before whirling around to the princess. Koyuki simply glared coldly at the young shinobi before whipping her head away with a huff.

"You've gotta be kidding me! I'm a high class ninja! Why do I have to babysit some spoiled princess?"

"A high class ninja," Koyuki snorted in laughter. "Yeah right…"

"HEY! I beat the bounty hunter Kakuzu! That makes me a high class ninja!"

"Naruto," Jiraiya snapped. "Stop arguing. You're watching the princess. You're the only one in all of Akatsuki who is as hard headed as she is." Naruto folded his arms across his chest, mumbling bitterly to himself.

* * *

Danzo glared daggers at Higure who sat across from him. Next to the retired shinobi was Orochimaru, and Hiashi next to the Hokage. Higure was trying his best to not feel awkward with Danzo staring at him, but it was more difficult than he figured.

"I certainly hope you didn't make up this tale to get out of the party Higure," Orochimaru finally said, breaking the silence. The retired shinobi huffed, a small smirk coming across his face. Orochimaru started to chuckle as he turned his attention to Danzo.

"If he knows what's good for him he better of not lied," Danzo seethed. "You're sure it was Madara Uchiha?"

"Nobody else can phase through solid objects," Higure replied, his tone light and mocking. "So I'm pretty sure it was him."

"And you say he went after your niece," Orochimaru mused. "What could the reason for that be?"

"They have a history together," Danzo answered, keeping his eye on Higure. "Him, Minato, and just about everyone else from that generation has a history with Madara."

"Strange. I've always heard of Madara Uchiha has being one of the founding fathers. I've also read a few reports about recent activity from a man who claims to be Madara Uchiha. Of course that was _before_ the attack from the Kyuubi on Konoha."

"He was behind that," Danzo snapped, shifting his eye to Orochimaru.

"Was he now? I always found it so curious that it just appeared in the center of the village ever so randomly. Luckily I was in the village at the time to lead the assault. But that's ancient history. Higure, did Madara or Sakura say anything to you about why he showed up tonight?"

Higure looked at the ground then turned his head to Orochimaru, "No. Madara only insulted my abilities, and Sakura said he only spoke of Naruto Uzumaki." Danzo's eye hardened, drifting away from Higure. "Considering what he knows it shouldn't come as a shock should it?"

"Silence," Danzo hissed, his eye snapping to Higure. The retired shinobi motioned his finger across his lips, sealing them shut. The Hokage scowled angrily before snapping his head to the window. "This is the second time now Madara has revealed himself…"

"The second time," Higure questioned intently as he leaned forward. "You mean you knew Madara was coming back? How long have you known?"

"The Chunin Exams," Orochimaru murmured. Danzo and Higure both turned to the Sannin. Orochimaru raised his head to the Hokage, a sly smirk on his face. "That man with the Mizukage…was Madara Uchiha wasn't he?"

"So what if he was," Danzo snapped.

"The Chunin Exams? And he's with the Mizukage? What have you been doing to deal with Madara since then?" Danzo stared at Higure in silence. The retired shinobi leaned back, a huff of disbelief escaping his lips. "You haven't done a damn thing have you? You haven't sent a message to the Raikage saying that the Mizukage is working with Madara Uchiha?"

"I would watch your tone with me if I were you Haruno," Danzo hissed. "I can still make your life very unpleasant." Higure glared at Danzo, to which he returned in kind.

"Please, this is hardly civilized," Orochimaru interjected. "Perhaps Higure-kun just needs some air?"

"I think I do. It stinks like rotten old man in here." Danzo growled, moving to smack the retired shinobi, but Higure was already halfway out of the carriage. Orochimaru chuckled before following him out of the carriage and closing the door.

The Sannin looked forward, seeing that his retired friend had a lead on him. He quickly picked up his pace to walk alongside Higure. "You certainly seem…bothered by Madara Uchiha. I've never seen your feathers so ruffled." Higure's eyes narrowed as if to remember something. Orochimaru smiled at his friend before looking forward. "I have to admit, I am a little curious about him. Both you and Danzo seem to share common ground in this respect."

"Madara is…a touchy subject. For both Danzo and I. Danzo cause he always has his secrets he has to hide."

"And I take it for you it's either personal or a family matter eh?" Higure nodded, shifting his eyes to Orochimaru for a moment. "So…him going after Sakura wasn't just coincidence was it?"

"There was no question of that," Higure replied softly.

"But he must hold some type of grudge against either Saiki-chan or Satoru-kun right? It couldn't have just been you right?"

"Like Danzo said: everyone from my generation was an enemy of Madara's." Orochimaru chuckled, resting his chin on his fist.

"Oh yes, I forgot about that little squadron that Minato founded." Higure's eyes narrowed on Orochimaru. The Sannin chuckled, lowering his arm before looking back at Higure. "Still don't feel like reliving those memories?"

"If it's all the same to you I'd rather not talk about it Orochimaru-san." The Sannin nodded in acknowledgement. Higure looked back forward, sighing through his nose. "But yes, he has a personal grudge against Saiki, as well as me. He's already settled his debt with Minato…"

"So he was behind the attack of the Kyuubi," Orochimaru muttered. "It was such a shame to lose our beloved Yellow Flash. He was such a good man. And his beloved bride to be was an amazing woman as well." Higure's eyes softened a bit in remorse. Orochimaru looked over, his smile fading once he saw the retired shinobi's sullen face. Higure looked forward, leaving the conversation behind.

* * *

Konan's squad flew high in the sky on Deidara's clay birds, as to avoid any trouble on the ground. Deidara pressed the button on his scope as he looked down at the ground. "Well, this is officially boring," the artist exclaimed.

"Tell me about it," Shibuki added, lying on his back as he stared at the sky.

"Both of you shut up," Ayane snapped.

"Right, we're going to give our position away hundreds of feet in the sky," Shibuki stated with a laugh.

"You never know," Nagato replied, sitting cross legged as he looked at the young Kiri shinobi. The redhead looked over to Konan's bird. "What do you think Konan?"

"I want to get home," the blue haired woman answered. "After being around that many Konoha higher-ups I feel like I need a shower."

"A nice cold shower after all that dancing Konan-chan," Haku added. The blue haired woman snapped her head to Haku, who grinned at her. Konan huffed as she turned her head away.

'_Naruto is hanging around too many people for my tastes…'_

"I wish I could've gotten some dancing in," Ino murmured with a disappointed tone. "There were plenty of cute guys at that party. Like that one kid sitting at the pink haired girl's table!"

"That was Sasuke Uchiha," Nagato said, turning his attention to Ino. "You know: Itachi's younger brother."

"Oh…never mind. I'm content with Haku-kun." The black haired boy chuckled nervously as Ino swooned over him.

Shibuki huffed bitterly, still not liking the idea of having to work with a member from the Yuki Clan. Deidara hummed curiously to himself as he looked ahead, "We should recruit somebody with space time warping powers. You know, like Minato Namikaze. That way we wouldn't have to suffer these boring trips back to base!"

"Be grateful I'm not making you walk," Konan said, turning to the young artist. Deidara huffed before continuing to scan the ground. Konan looked down at her lap, _'I wonder how Yahiko is doing…?'_

* * *

Zabuza growled as he swatted at nearby branches while swinging a kunai to cut the vines out of his path. "I thought we were in the Land of Hot Water! Not the land of freaking plants and bugs the size of wagons!"

"That would be _way_ too long of a name for a country," Obito stated as he followed behind Zabuza. The swordsmen turned his head, growling fiercely at Obito who laughed nervously. "I mean, yeah! This place is too much like a swamp!"

"Both of you shut up," Yahiko snapped. "Obito you're supposed to be keeping an eye out!"

"I am, I am," the young Uchiha replied. "Sharingan blazing and what have you. Plus we have a sensor thank you very much."

"I don't want to take any chances. Let's just find this preacher and get back to base."

"I'm picking up something," Mei, the sensor from Konoha stated. "Up ahead…there are a group of twelve…all with low chakras. Bandits most likely. And there's another approaching them slowly. Definitely a ninja but his chakra is…dark."

"That could be him. Let's move!" Yahiko rushed forward with Mei and two other Akatsuki shinobi behind him.

"A preacher with dark chakra," Obito questioned as he quickly followed behind Zabuza. The swordsmen ignored his talkative companion and followed Yahiko.

The Akatsuki squadron stopped and hid themselves in a nearby bush. Yahiko motioned for the others to move around and form a perimeter, but kept Zabuza by his side. On the path ahead, a man wearing a long cloak that covered his body and a hood that hid his face approached. Yahiko narrowed his eyes, wondering if this was their target.

Suddenly, a group of a dozen men ran out into the path, surrounding the cloaked figure. "Alright, hand over your money and anything of value," the apparent leader of the group ordered. "Do what we say and we might be nice enough to let ya live!" The man's hooded head simply moved back and forth between the bandits. "Hey! You deaf or somethin? Hand over anything you got!"

"Are you of an evil sort," the man spoke with an even tone. The bandit looked to his comrades in confusion. The other bandits shrugged in response. The hooded man lifted up his arm, revealing prayer beads in his hand, and a strange symbol at the end. The symbol was of an upside down triangle encompassed by a circle. "It's my duty to slay the wicked. We'll see who the lord says is the most wicked of you all here."

"Hey listen buddy," one bandit shouted, stepping towards the man. "Just give us your money and-," The hooded figure threw his foot back, hitting the man square in the chest. A pain grunt escaped the bandit's mouth before he went sailing back down the path, smashing through a tree. The other bandits looked at their friend in shock before turning back to the hooded man.

"Lord Jashin, point to me the most wicked of these souls so that I might smite him for you…" The necklace started shaking. The bandits looked in shock before the symbol of the necklace shot up in the air, causing the criminals to gasp. The necklace then shot to the side, pointing between two bandits. The hooded man simply followed the direction the necklace was pointing and hummed quietly.

"D-does that mean we're equally wicked," one of the bandits asked, looking at the necklace that pointed between him and his companion.

"No…" The man slowly lifted his hands up and removed his hood. He had bright purple eyes and silver hair swept back. His eyes narrowed at the bushes where his necklace was pointing.

Zabuza groaned as he slammed his face in the dirt in disbelief. Of course out of _all_ the people in the area _he_ was the most evil. "Fuck!" The swordsmen quickly pushed himself off the ground, throwing two kunai forward.

"Wait damn it," Yahiko shouted.

The preacher spun to the side as one kunai hit the bandit in front of him and the second kunai hit the one behind him. The two men fell over in a heap, dead before they hit the ground. The bandits all trembled in fear before running away. Zabuza slid across the path, one hand gripping his sword as he squared off against the preacher. The necklace continued to point at the Demon of the Mist, much to his aggravation.

"You must be quite wicked," the preacher murmured. "Just how many sins have you committed?" Zabuza remained silent, waiting for the preacher to make a move. "Lord Jashin will surely bless me for slaying you…"

"If you only knew how many people before you have judged me," Zabuza replied. The swordsmen lifted his sword off his back and slammed the tip of it into the ground. "And how many of them had died afterwards!"

"Truly an evil soul. The world must be cleansed of your kind." The preacher reached to his back and swiftly twirled around a massive three bladed scythe.

"Quite the weapon for a preacher," Zabuza mocked.

"It's to assist in the killing of evil spirits such as yourself." With that, the preacher shot forward.

Zabuza roared as he swung his sword forward. The preacher lifted his weapon up, catching the massive sword between his scythe's blades. He grunted in shock, having to plant his feet on the ground in order to fully stop Zabuza. The swordsmen growled lowly, putting his other hand on the back of his sword to push down on the preacher. In kind, the silver haired man pushed back with his scythe. The two were at a standstill, neither capable of overpowering the other.

Suddenly, something hit the preacher from the side, throwing him to the side. Obito placed his hands on the ground and quickly launched himself away from when Zabuza's sword would likely come down on him. The preacher jerked back on a cable attached to the bottom of his scythe. Zabuza gasped in shock as his sword was wrenched from his grasp and pulled towards the preacher along with his scythe. The swordsmen turned to Obito, practically screaming at him in rage. The self proclaimed Copycat Ninja laughed nervously at Zabuza.

The preacher's scythe dropped Zabuza's sword at his feet. He twirled the scythe around before pointing it at Zabuza. "So, the wicked one has friends does he?"

"Hey, he has a name. It's Zabuza Momochi!" The preacher turned to Obito then back at Zabuza.

"The Demon of the Mist eh?" The swordsmen this time did scream as he turned to Obito. The Uchiha once again shot a nervous laugh at the swordsmen's direction. "Lord Jashin will truly be thankful to me for slaughtering a demon such as yourself. If I'm not mistaken, Demon of the Mist, you travel with a boy from the cursed Yuki Clan of Kirigakure do you not? Not only that, but your cloaks tell me you're of that organization Akatsuki. They have the Kyuubi's Jinchuriki, and possibly the Shukaku's as well."

"Jinchuriki are not demons," Obito snapped, his tone no longer lighthearted as he turned to the preacher. "And besides, we're no worse than Danzo or his Alliance are we?" The preacher turned his head to Obito in curiosity.

"Danzo you say…?"

"That's what Akatsuki is for," Zabuza replied. "We're going to take down Danzo and his Alliance."

"Well…that changes a few things I believe." The preacher lowered his scythe to his side and looked between the two shinobi. "Danzo is responsible for destroying my village and murdering countless followers of Lord Jashin. I am the last of my kind, as a blessing from Lord Jashin himself. In his name, I have promised myself that I would avenge my people and not rest until my blade rests in Danzo's heart."

"So…you're not going to kill us?" The preacher smiled at Obito before bending over to pick up Zabuza's sword.

"You may be aligned with wicked individuals who have committed their fair share of sins," the preacher picked up Zabuza's sword and stood up, "But your intentions are clear and pure." He turned his head to the swordsmen before holding Zabuza's sword out to him. "And that's more than Danzo can say. I, Hidan, the last of the Jashin Followers shall join Akatsuki to help you take down Danzo."

Zabuza looked to Obito who nodded. The swordsmen walked towards Hidan who had a smile on his face. Zabuza reached out and grabbed the handle of his sword, keeping a wary eye on Hidan. The preacher smiled and released the large sword and stepped back. Zabuza lifted his sword up and placed it on his back.

"Your friends can come out now too if they'd like." Zabuza huffed before turning around as Yahiko and the others walked into the clearing. Hidan lowered himself to the ground, crossing his legs as he rested his scythe against his shoulder. "I must now pray for Lord Jashin's forgiveness and permission to join." Hidan closed his eyes and pressed his hands gently together. Zabuza and Yahiko looked at each other, questioning if the preacher was serious. The two swordsmen turned back to Hidan who sat there in silence. After a few seconds of not moving, Zabuza could sense that asking for permission from a deity was going to take a long time.

* * *

Naruto sat on top of a barrel as he looked at Princess Koyuki. The young woman hadn't moved from the edge of the railing since they set sail. She just continually stared out at sea, her eyes devoid of any emotion or caring whatsoever. Naruto was still annoyed that he had to watch her when he could be training.

"How're you managing Uzumaki?" Naruto turned his head, seeing Hana standing next to him while staring at the princess.

"How come Pervy Sage brought me along just to watch a princess? I mean I just beat the Immortal Kakuzu! I shouldn't be bumped down to guard duty!"

"I just asked how you were doing," Hana replied, a taunting smirk on her face. "But like Lord Jiraiya said: you're the only one hard headed enough to deal with the snot nosed bitch. Even I got tired of her in a short period of time. Lucky for her Zabuza didn't lose her patience."

"I have an even shorter temper than Zabuza! This is such crap!" Hana chuckled before patting Naruto on the head. "I wanted to go to Iwagakure anyway…"

"The new Tsuchikage's coronation?" Naruto nodded, huffing bitterly in the princess's direction. "I take it you're thinking of that little pink haired girl?"

"Does EVERYBODY know about that," Naruto asked, turning to Hana.

"Kiba told me about it," Hana replied with a smirk. "He said she was kinda cute." Naruto huffed, not wanting to talk about his past romances. Hana chuckled then put her arm around the young Jinchuriki's shoulders. "I'm sure that things'll work out if they're meant to be. Don't give up. It wouldn't be like you at all Naruto." The young blonde couldn't help but smile in agreement. Naruto looked up curiously and cocked his head to the side a bit.

"How did you get so smart about romance Hana-san?"

The young woman smiled, sitting down next to Naruto on the barrel as she stared off into the distance, "Itachi and I were...kind of the same way." Naruto blinked in confusion, waiting for her to go on. Hana turned her head sharply, her ponytail flung over her shoulder, draping over her chest. "When he first showed up, I was wary of them both. The Uchiha were a huge part in the Inuzuka Genocide, as a way to prove their loyalty to Danzo. Still, I knew Itachi had nothing to do with it. He was too young, but I was all to willing to cast the blame to him. Still...there was something captivating about him. I couldn't stop thinking about him when we were apart. I thought I just wanted to beat the living crap out of him, but when I was around him all I could do was stare. Eventually, we started talking..." Hana paused then chuckled to herself. Naruto tilted his head in confusion once more. The young woman opened her eyes, a warm and softened look reflecting off her face. "We became fast friends and eventually...well we became something more."

Naruto laughed softly before looking out the same direction as Hana, "It's weird though. I never imagined you and Itachi as a couple. It's just...weird I guess."

"He's quite the romantic kiddo. Say what you will about his pacifistic nature, soft hearted tactics, and reluctance to kill people, Itachi can charm the hell out of a woman."

"Huh...maybe I could get some lessons from him sometime." Hana chuckled before putting her hand on Naruto's shoulder. The Jinchuriki smiled up at her before turning his attention back to the princess. "So uh...what exactly are we going to be doing in the Land of Snow?"

"There are a group of rebels in the Land of Snow who are opposing Doto Kazahana, the current leader of the country. We're going to help them at least stand on equal footing against Doto and then we may or may not leave them on their own. Depends on if the Alliance will have a presence. This would be the first open act that Akatsuki makes against the Alliance since the Chunin Exams."

Naruto nodded, understanding what that meant. If Akatsuki acted out openly against Konoha and the other villages then they would be rocketed to the top of the most wanted list. They'd be a top priority for Danzo and his Alliance. Naruto smiled as he looked to the horizon. He couldn't wait.

* * *

A few days passed, and Sakura was settling back in at her home. She decided to do some reorganizing on her day off, as well as help her uncle clean house. She never understood the man's obsessive tendencies to make sure everything was constantly spotless. His grumpy ass hardly ever allowed for visitors anyway.

Sakura let out a soft sigh. Her eyes narrowed a bit as she recalled the night at the Tsuchikage's coronation. The masked man, Tobi, and his words about Naruto Uzumaki. Not only that, but he seemed to know Higure as well as Sakura's mother. On top of all that, the man seemed to be enough of a threat for Higure to approach Danzo and cause the coronation to end early. Sakura knew her uncle was keeping something from her. Hell, she'd have to be an idiot not to realize that much. What's more, she knew that he wouldn't tell her even if she tried to pry the information out of him. Sakura huffed as she placed her clothes in her dresser. Whether Higure liked it or not, whatever was going on now involved Sakura. She had to convince him to tell her.

"WOO HOO!" Sakura's head snapped up before she turned to her door with the most puzzled expression she could manage.

"Uncle…?" Sakura's door opened, and her grinning uncle threw his head into the door.

"Come watch this!" Higure's head vanished behind the door. Sakura stared at the place her uncle's head was at with an expression of disbelief. Eventually, she just smacked her forehead to prepare for whatever her uncle was doing and headed towards the door. She looked out in the hallway, seeing two clear streaks across the floor. Sakura followed the streaks to her uncle who looked as though he was ready to sprint out of the starting gates. "Ready?"

"Sure," Sakura sighed, leaning against the doorframe. Higure took a few quick steps forward, then slid across the ground. Sakura watched her uncle's feet, noticing all the nearby dust flying off the ground and clinging to his sock. Higure eventually slowed to a stop and turned to Sakura with the grin of a five year old with a new toy.

"Isn't that so cool?"

"You used wind chakra along with your momentum to bring the dust closer to your sock and stick to it. Wish you taught me that before I went to fight Onoki." Sakura flashed a smile to her uncle before entering her room. Higure blinked in confusion for a moment as he started taking off his socks. He tossed them over his shoulder onto a pile of other equally dusty socks.

"Sakura?" Higure knocked lightly on the door. "Is everything okay?"

"Yep, no problem." The retired man groaned lightly, pressing his forehead against the door. He knew that tone all too well.

"Do you wanna talk about it…?"

"There's nothing to talk about is there?" Higure sighed, turning around to lean his back against the door. He never enjoyed having to pry information out of Sakura.

"There's obviously something to talk about. Wanna tell me?"

"You tell me." Higure groaned, slouching over. It was like talking to a wall at this point. Which was sort of what he was doing anyway. Higure started going through recent events to think of what in the world could be bothering Sakura. He sighed once more, looking up at the ceiling.

"I take it this is about the masked guy?" A few moments of silence passed. That was just as good as a yes. "Sakura, I know that scared you, but I promise he's not going to hurt you."

"Why was he after me? How come he knew who you and mom were?" Higure's eyes narrowed a bit. As much as he hated to admit it he had no reason to lie to her about this. "It's obvious he holds some type of grudge against the two of you, or he wouldn't be coming after me."

"It's…complicated Sakura. It really is. You're better off not knowing." Higure gasped briefly before he was thrown forward by Sakura's door. The man sputtered as he stumbled and fell onto his backside. He looked up, seeing Sakura glare daggers at him.

"Someone could've killed me and has an obvious connection to you and mom and I'm better off not knowing? Explain to me in what world that makes sense!" Higure groaned as he rose to his feet. Things were getting complicated.

"It involves something that Danzo would rather have remain a secret," Higure whispered. Sakura blinked in shock, a light gasp escaping her lips. She knew as well as anyone else that secrets the Hokage wanted to keep secret, they either stayed a secret, or people went missing. "Believe me, if I could I would tell you everything. But most of it is classified by direct order of Danzo and the village council. Get their clearance if you really want to know." Sakura bit her lower lip in frustration. She knew there wasn't a chance in hell that the Hokage would reveal one of the village's secrets to her, a lowly Genin. She also didn't want to force her uncle to share anything that could get him in trouble.

"I understand Uncle Higure," Sakura murmured. Higure smiled as he walked up to Sakura. He put his arms around her and pulled his niece closely. Sakura wrapped her arms around her uncle, returning his embrace.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you more about this. I wish I could Sakura, I really do. And I know that whole event scared you." Higure released Sakura and stepped back to kneel at eye level with his niece. A smile spread over his lips as he placed his hands on Sakura's shoulders. "I promise though, that I won't let that man harm you." Sakura returned her uncle's smile.

She couldn't help but blush a bit, feeling like a small child by the fact she was reassured by her uncle's words. She lifted her hand up, pressing two of her fingers against Higure's forehead. The retired man chuckled then did the same. It was their way of showing affection to one another, since they both had large foreheads. Sakura always hated that the one thing she inherited from her uncle was the massive billboard brow.

"SAKURA!" Higure groaned loudly, his head nearly falling off his shoulders as it slumped down in frustration. Zaku and Dosu appeared at the top of the stairs, smiling and waving to Higure. They both _knew_ he'd be upset that they showed up unannounced. "Um, sorry for barging in," Zaku apologized.

"You ever hear of knocking," Higure questioned, slowly turning his attention to the two boys.

"It's important sir," Dosu replied. "Danzo has called the Genin involved in the assassination of Onoki to get to his office as soon as possible. He's going to officially promoted all of us to the rank of Chunin." Sakura's eyes widened in shock before she turned to her uncle. The older man smiled back at Sakura then motioned towards her teammates.

"Congratulations Sakura."

"YES!" Sakura quickly bolted for her room, but stopped, turning to Zaku and Dosu. "Give me two minutes and I'll be ready!" The two nodded to their teammate, chuckling a bit at her frantic behavior. Sakura disappeared inside of her room, closing the door behind her.

After a few moments, Higure turned his head to Zaku and Dosu who did the same. The three stared at each other for a moment before the two boys waved then walked down the stairs. Higure smiled and huffed before getting up to his feet. Those two were learning…slowly.

* * *

Kisame stood between Kushimaru and Mangetsu, two of his fellow swordsmen, behind Yagura. The four Kiri natives looked at the Fourth Raikage across from them, also protected by three individuals. According to Madara's intel, one of the two men was the inheritor of the Third Raikage's black lightning. Another was a sensor ninja of some type, a famous one at that. The third was the two tails Jinchuriki. Kisame was wary of the Fourth Raikage, A, since he had no idea what the full extents of his power was.

"I'm still not sure about this alliance Mizukage," A spoke, tapping his large finger on the table in front of him. "How am I sure I can trust you? Your village's activities have been…shady to say the least."

"I understand that Raikage-sama," Yagura softly stated. "I was trying to fight fire with fire as it were. I see now that if there's to be any chance of beating Danzo and his Alliance, that you and I must work together." The Mizukage leaned forward, his fingers overlapping one another. "I'm already trying to work out alliances with other countries as well…"

"What countries," the Raikage questioned. "I want to know who I'm dealing with Mizukage!"

"Of course Raikage-sama. One group which is very keen to join us would be the Land of Sky. They're eager to exact vengeance on Konoha for what happened to them during the Second Great War. They're aerial technology and capabilities will be a great asset for us against the Alliance. I'm also trying to send message to the Land of Iron to help us." The Raikage and his guards' eyes widened in shock. They looked at one another, sharing the same skeptical look before turning back to Yagura.

"The Land of Iron has remained neutral since the beginning of the shinobi countries. How exactly will you convince them to join us?"

"The people of the Land of Iron aren't idiots. They're realize that Danzo's Alliance is the biggest threat to them. If they conquer the Lands of Water and Lightning then there will be no stopping Danzo and the other countries from running amuck over the other lands. We're their best bet if they want to _stay_ neutral past this war."

"This is a dangerous action you're taking," A stated, leaning back in his chair. "Waging war with no viable cause. I don't mean to disrespect you Mizukage, but you're young." Yagura's eyes narrowed a bit on the larger Kage. "Wars are bloody, vicious and savage. Much like how you've ruled your country since you became Mizukage. It's not the way the world works. We need more of a reason to fight them."

"They're threatening to take over the world," Yagura snapped quietly. "Danzo is a power hungry man, and won't stop until the whole world bows to his whim. We have to stop him, otherwise we'll all perish. I'm not waging war for the blood or violence, but because Danzo must be stopped. Surely you understand A. Your village has been rivals with Konoha for decades now." The Raikage huffed, no longer tapping his finger. Yagura continued, "There's no shame in getting asking for help my friend. To stop Danzo, we must work together. I know you wouldn't want to wage war, and you'd like to believe Danzo wouldn't just do the same to us, but it's not the world we live in." A hummed deeply, his eyes drifting to the table.

"Sir," Yugito, the Jinchuriki, questioned.

"Very well Yagura," A finally spoke. "You and I are allies against Danzo and his regime."

The Mizukage smiled, rising up from his chair, "Then I officially announce the beginning of The Water/Lightning Union." The two groups walked around the table and met towards the center. Yagura extended his hand to A, who grabbed it and shook. "First we must prepare generals for the war. I'll make up a list of candidates on my side and send it to you."

"I'll do the same. What about the Land of Sky? Do they have any generals?"

"They have many shinobi and many devices, but nobody that can lead an army. They don't care if they're nothing more than mere grunts on the frontlines, as long as they get revenge on Konoha. If the Land of Iron can be drawn into our Union then I'm sure they'd have a few capable generals as well. Until then, we must work with what we have my friend." A nodded, releasing Yagura's hand. The Mizukage nodded back then turned sharply. He and the three swordsmen headed towards the door.

As they entered the halls of the Raikage's secret underground chambers, a figure appeared from the shadows, walking behind Yagura. "That went well."

"Indeed," Kisame agreed, a sinister grin forming across his face. "So, in all actuality you've got three nations under thumb right Madara?"

"If Mao can be trusted, then yes. But he's going to work for Danzo for the time being. Things must go as I've designed them to be."

"Quite the intricate one aren't you Madara-sama," Mangetsu asked, grinning deviously like Kisame.

"Have you located Raiga yet," the masked man asked, shifting his Sharingan to the young swordsmen. "Ameyuri has been bugging me about how he stole her swords and she wants them back."

"Hey, I'd have more time for it if you didn't insist on bringing me on missions like this," Mangetsu said with a casual shrug. "But I've learned that Raiga Kurosuki was killed a couple of months ago by a group of shinobi wearing black cloaks with red clouds on em."

"Akatsuki," Madara hummed. "So, now they have the lightning fangs?"

"And Zabuza Momochi," Kushimaru added.

"So they have two of our swords," Mangetsu scowled. "That's too many in my opinion!"

"He's right," Kisame stated. "If we got even just the lightning fangs back to Ameyuri, then our power would increase. Plus Zabuza getting taken out would be bad news for Akatsuki wouldn't it?"

"I want the lightning fangs. Zabuza Momochi, either way. I'll form a team to go after the swords once we get back to the Land of Water." With that, Madara vanished in the shadows as quickly as he appeared.

* * *

Sasori sighed as he shifted the last of the papers over across his desk. The Kazekage had just finished the paper work to promote Temari and Kankuro both to the rank of Chunin. Now things were quiet. Sasori was slowly but surely working towards building his forces for the upcoming war. His people didn't want to believe it could happen, but knowing Danzo and the rest of the world's feelings towards the Alliance, it would undoubtedly happen.

Sasori looked up when he heard somebody knock on his door. Kabuto walked in with a hunched over ANBU. The redhead sighed, sitting up to pretend he cared. "What is it you two?"

"Lord Sasori, Hiruko here says that there have been sightings of shinobi from Kumogakure in our country." Sasori's eyes narrowed. How could shinobi across the world get into the Land of Wind? "Scouts claim that they've been spotted heading out from the Honored Siblings' Mansion." Sasori narrowed his eyes on Kabuto. They both knew that the assistant was entering dangerous waters at this point.

"What's your game Kabuto," Sasori questioned. "Suggesting that my grandmother and great uncle are traitors is a very...serious accusation to say the least."

"It's true my lord," Hiruko replied. "I have seen it with my own eyes. As much as it pains me to say it, the Honored Siblings are traitors to the village." Sasori's eyes fell to the desk. He knew his grandmother wouldn't be so stupid, let alone so sloppy. Something else was going on. Someone must have been setting his grandmother up.

"Hiruko...can you give me a moment with Kabuto?" The ANBU agent nodded then exited the room very quickly. Sasori leaned back, narrowed eyes focused on Kabuto. "What's your game Kabuto? Why are you using one of the village's most respected ANBU to try and set up granny Chiyo?"

"I would never frame Lady Chiyo, nor would Hiruko accuse her of such a serious crime without seeing it himself. You know he'd never lie for the sake of his village." Kabuto grew a devious smirk on his face. Sasori narrowed his eyes, leaning forward a bit.

"What do we have to gain by killing those two? It would just increase hatred for me from the older generation. Plus for all I know you're lying to me. What do you get from this Kabuto?" The assistant walked forward, pulled up a chair from across the desk and sat down. Sasori looked his assistant in the eye.

"Your collection..." Sasori's eyes lit up with a flicker of excitement. The Kazekage soon glared at Kabuto. "You can't tell me that they wouldn't make a good edition? I've started to dabble in experiments that should allow for human puppets that can move without need of a puppet master. It'll take some work, but imagine the Honored Siblings fighting for Sunagakure once again, all for the great Kazekage Sasori."

"What do _you_ gain from this Kabuto?" The assistant smiled as he sat down across from the Kazekage. Sasori watched closely, as though Kabuto were a cornered snake ready to strike; with extreme caution and distrust.

"Human puppetry was an art you perfected, and nobody else but you can do it so well," Kabuto explained. "For a puppet to retain their abilities, have chakra, use jutsu on their own is what made you so great. It's a forbidden art, as declared by you so that nobody else can use human puppets. My question is though…" Kabuto's glasses slid down his nose a bit as he leaned forward with a smirk on his face. "If you _perfected_ the art…who invented it?"

Sasori huffed with an amused look on his face before leaning back in his chair, away from Kabuto. "Monzaemon Chikamatsu. But he declared that puppetry forbidden long ago and hid the scrolls away on what limited knowledge he had."

"Which leads me to my point of how _you_ discovered it." Sasori's smirk vanished, replaced by a skeptical, wary glance. His assistant was treading in dangerous territory whether he knew it or not. Most likely Kabuto knew. "Lady Chiyo…has most of Lord Chikamatsu's knowledge locked away in her estate and you know it. Now only would you gain access to that knowledge if you went through with this, but I could also use that knowledge, combined with my already necromancer like jutsus, to create a force for Sunagakure the likes of which neither Akatsuki nor any other nation will have seen before."

Sasori's eyes drifted to the table. It was a sound plan. He had everything to gain and nothing to lose. So why was it he was so hesitant to go through with this plan? Was it because Chiyo and Ebizo were his only remaining family?

Sasori scowled, snapping his eyes up at Kabuto, "Do it." Kabuto smiled then nodded before rising to his feet and heading to the door. Sasori couldn't afford to be held back by his feelings now. If he had to he would kill the Honored Siblings himself. "Kabuto!"

The medic froze in his tracks and looked back over his shoulder, "Yes my lord?"

"You have proof that the Honored Siblings are talking to ninja from the Land of Lightning?" Kabuto smiled, turning his body towards Sasori a little more before pushing his glasses back up his nose.

"If there's not, I'm sure we could fabricate some evidence my lord. Don't worry about losing the support of your people. If need be we could remind everyone what a great job you've done to set the civilians in their place." Sasori's scowl hardened, causing Kabuto's cocky smile to vanish.

"Just make sure that there's a _reason_ behind this that the people can support. Or else I might end up adding you to my collection." Kabuto began to visibly sweat as he nodded. Sasori nodded back, knowing his point had been made clear. The medical assistant turned back around and left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

* * *

Sakura stood next to Dosu and Zaku, across from Sasuke, Hinata, and Shino, all of them bowing their heads before Danzo. "In light of your service to Konoha, you have taken down a traitor to the Alliance. Onoki of Both Scales was not an easy opponent to defeat, but with courage and power you all managed to defeat him. And in doing so, you have shown the world that the Wrath of Fire's ferocity and influence knows no boundaries of age or power. And it is because of you power and strong, passionate belief in the Wrath of Fire that I promote you six to the rank of Chunin. With this promotion, you six shall be entrusted to spread this belief to the world, to make it a better place. Only with the Wrath of Fire will this world of chaos finally be at peace. And as Chunin, you will always carry the Wrath of Fire with you. That is what I entrusted to you children."

"Thank you Lord Hokage," the six Genin turned Chunin spoke. The kids lifted their heads, looking at their leader who nodded to them. The children nodded back and turned around, heading towards the door.

Sakura stopped and slowly turned her head to look back over her shoulder. Danzo had just made it around his desk and sat down when he noticed the young Chunin staring at him.

"What is it child?" Sakura snapped her eyes to the ground, having half a mind to just run out of the door immediately. The kunoichi took a deep breath, swallowed her fears and turned to Danzo, bowing her head before speaking.

"My lord, I was wondering if I could ask you something."

"If it's about why Kakashi's team got promoted I don't want to hear it. I got enough of an earful from your teammates about it."

"No my lord," Sakura blurted out, raising her head in shock. "It has nothing to do with our promotion."

"Then what is it Sakura?" For some inexplicable reason, the fact Danzo used her name made Sakura all the more nervous. The kunoichi fidgeted for a moment, trying to muster the courage to ask the Hokage.

"At the Tsuchikage's Coronation…my uncle approached you about a masked man who attacked me didn't he?" Sakura dared to look up, seeing Danzo's single, piercing eye fixated on her. The kunoichi's eyes fell back to the floor as she continued nervously. "I asked him who he was…but Uncle Higure told me it was classified and that I should ask you for permission. I feel like I have a right to know who the man was who attacked me since he seemed to know my family, and if I know more about him then maybe I can help defeat him, or find a way to protect myself or-,"

"Enough," Danzo murmured. Sakura closed her mouth, not daring to speak another word. Danzo stood up, placing his hand on the desk in front of him. "Due to your age and rank I obviously can't share such confidential information to you Sakura. Granted you were the one who defeated Onoki and swayed the hearts of an entire village to openly accept their treaty with my Alliance, but you're still too young and too under ranked."

"I understand," Sakura murmured softly, feeling like an idiot for even asking in the first place.

"I can share a bit with you though, for your own safety of course. The man who attacked you has been a part of Konoha's history for a long time now, mostly as a terrorist trying to destroy our village. He's very powerful, and you won't even be able to stand a chance against him by yourself. He's very secretive, and utilizing space time manipulation jutsus, which even we don't know fully how to counteract." Sakura nodded, absorbing this information like a sponge. Danzo sighed as he lowered himself back into his chair. "He also has a history with your mother, father, and uncle, which more or less could have stemmed from Naruto Uzumaki's mother and father." Sakura gasped lightly upon hearing the traitor's name.

"What do you mean by that," Sakura asked softly.

"I've given you more than enough information. If you encounter him again, try to run because you can't beat him. You've also been told his powers and witnessed them firsthand. With that you should more than adequately be able to defend yourself." Sakura quickly bowed her head, not wanting to try the Hokage's patience further.

"Of course Lord Danzo. Thank you very much. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate this." Danzo nodded, then waved his hand lazily for Sakura to leave. The kunoichi turned around and swiftly left the room.

"Well that was generous of you." Danzo's eyes narrowed as he turned around in his chair. Orochimaru was seen leaning against the wall, arms crossed and a smile on his face. "Sharing so much confidential information with Sakura Haruno like that."

"She's a valuable tool. She was able to turn Iwagakure to me with open arms by killing their leader. There hasn't been a shinobi like that in quite awhile. I can't afford to lose her to Madara Uchiha." Orochimaru hummed before walking around Danzo's desk. The Hokage watched the Sannin, knowing he had some reason to be in his office.

"The Root Agents reported back. They couldn't capture princess Koyuki." Danzo's eye flared in shock. "We also lost one Yamato, but that's not a major issue. The Root Agents came across Jiraiya, Zabuza Momochi, Obito Uchiha, and two kunoichi, one of which was an Inuzuka survivor." Danzo scowled, clenching his fist tightly while grinding away at his teeth. "Our intelligence reports have led me to believe that Akatsuki is going to use the princess to get in with the rebel faction in the Land of Snow who oppose Doto Kazahana's reign." Danzo huffed, lowering his eye to the desk.

"If those rebels with the help of Akatsuki overthrow the Land of Snow then I'll never have access to that technology they use to help me in this upcoming war…"

"My thoughts exactly," Orochimaru murmured. "And as we know, Doto will never allow any number of ANBU in his country, especially after our part in the princess's escape so many years ago." Danzo scowled, one of his many mistakes in dealing with the Land of Snow. By taking the princess, he thought that he could secure a hearing with Doto to make a treaty. However, certain shinobi saw fit to make sure the princess never made it to Konoha. "Which is why I would suggest…maybe doing to the Land of Snow what you did with Iwagakure and Onoki…minus the killing of their leader of course."

"You suggest I send a team of Genin to the Land of Snow to take down an entire army of rebels in the Land of Snow?"

"Of course not," Orochimaru replied with a smile. "Just send the team to show Doto we're sorry for our past mistakes and we're ready to make up for it. Even if it means sacrificing ever man, woman…and child." Danzo hummed lowly, understanding the hidden meaning behind the child remark. It certainly would show Konoha was eager to aid the Land of Snow during their hour of need. And if Akatsuki was involved, as well as Jiraiya, then the Land of Snow would definitely need help.

"I'll make up a team to go," Danzo murmured. "I'm going to send your Serpent Five for certain though." Orochimaru nodded in acknowledgement, believing Kimimaro could handle being team leader for one mission. "You're dismissed Orochimaru." The Sannin smiled and bowed before he shot out of the window behind Danzo. The Hokage had much planning to do ahead of him.

* * *

Night had fallen upon the Land of Wind. Chiyo walked out of the garden with Izumi, getting ready to put out the candles around the house and prepare for bed. "So tomorrow we're going to work more with controlling multiple puppets, understand?"

"Yes Lady Chiyo," Izumi replied with a smile. Chiyo returned her apprentice's smile. Ever since they had gone to the coronation, Izumi had been much happier and more eager to help around the house. She had a new flame for life that even made the cranky old Chiyo happier all the time.

"Why don't you go to bed early dear," Chiyo suggested. "I can finish up by myself."

"Are you sure Lady Chiyo?" The old woman chuckled and nodded, pushing Izumi forward to urge her to go to bed. The younger woman flashed a dazzling smile before moving quickly towards her room. Chiyo sighed, a smile resting on her face before she turned to the nearest lit candle.

Kabuto, fully shrouded in a cloak with his hood up stood in front of the Honored Siblings' mansion. "It's time…" Kabuto lowered his hood, letting the moonlight wash over him and the legion of Suna ANBU behind him. "For the curtain to close on the Honored Siblings…" The first line of ANBU ran past Kabuto, and then the second line, each group moving slower than the last towards the mansion. The medic flashed a smile that was treacherous and devious as he approached the mansion with the last group of ANBU. "Tonight the Honored Siblings of Sunagakure, the biggest traitors to the village in history, will die…" Kabuto chuckled a bit, scarcely able to contain himself as he watched the first group of ANBU lunged forward and broke into the mansion.

**

* * *

Well…long time eh? Hehehe…ehhhhh *headdesk* I know I've been gone for a long time now. Sorry bout that everyone. It's just that I've been kinda busy with personal stuff, which has affected my school stuff, and a lot of stuff that's just snow balled and affected my need/willingness/care for writing. Luckily, I'm getting there with the self discovery stuff all these young people keep preaching about (I'm not that old. I just turned nineteen the first of March lol), and I'm slowly (very slowly) getting that urge to write again. Thankfully, next chapter be action-like-filled-baba-ga-doosh. Don't ask. Please just don't ask. For your own safety. Anyway…I get the feeling I lost some reviewers with this, but I do look forward to the three or four who stuck around =P**


	27. The Honored Siblings

Chiyo gasped in shock as she heard the windows smash open. She looked around, seeing Suna ANBU rushing into her home and converging on her. The puppet master scowled, spinning around and delivering a strong kick across the faces of one unfortunate ANBU. The man flew across the room, rolling across a table and smashing plates, cups, and anything else. Chiyo landed on the ground, attaching a chakra thread to the ankle of a second ANBU and yanked forward violently. The ANBU was pulled off his feet, crying out in shock. Chiyo spun around, screaming as she lashed the man into his comrade, knocking both ANBU to the floor.

"Izumi, Ebizo we're under attack!" More ANBU came crashing in through the windows, wielding all manner of weaponry as they stared down Chiyo.

"Wind style: great wind scythe!" A few ANBU turned around just in time to see a curved blade of concentrated wind coming at them. The group sprung out of the way and avoided the attack. "Ninja art: poison fog!" The ANBU looked up, seeing Ebizo shoot out a stream of purple smoke from his mouth. The ANBU all gasped in shock, attempted to use their arms to shield themselves from the poison mist.

Ebizo landed on the ground as the ANBU bodies piled on top of each other. The old man looked around for a moment, ignoring the ANBU surrounding him before turning to his sister. "Where's Izumi?"

"Check her bedroom," Chiyo shouted as she dodged and then kicked an ANBU straight in the stomach.

"Izumi," Ebizo called out as he darted towards the young girl's room. Before Ebizo could reach for the door, it erupted in splinters as two ANBU hit the ground. Izumi sprung backwards out of her room, pulling her arms and hands back to pull an unconscious, or possibly dead, ANBU out of her room.

The young puppet user pulled the Suna shinobi forward, slamming both feet in his chest to send him flying into another ANBU. The young woman landed on the ground, looking to Ebizo and then Chiyo.

"What's going on here?"

"Looks like my dear old grandson has finally had enough of me," Chiyo murmured, barely above a venomous whisper. She knew that Sasori wasn't stupid though. Killing the Honored Siblings would be a fall from grace with the people of Sunagakure.

"It's not that Lady Chiyo." The two Honored Siblings and Izumi turned and looked to the front door. A pair of ANBU stood on either side of a slouched over man who wore a tattered piece of black cloth over his face. "We cherish the Honored Siblings of Sunagakure. You two are the shining lights for our village. But even you aren't above the punishment for treason." Chiyo's gaze hardened, Ebizo blinked in shock, and Izumi gasped in disbelief. Hiruko stopped next to another four ANBU while staring down the Honored Siblings. "I've seen it with my own eyes Lady Chiyo…Kumogakure shinobi coming from the mansion and leaving immediately. Only way they could've gotten past our various outposts and scouting parties is if _someone_ gave them information. That someone would have to be you."

"Hiruko," Chiyo said almost immediately with a tone of disapproval. "You're the captain of Sunagakure's ANBU. I thought you would at least have some self respect not to become Sasori's lapdog." The ANBU Chief scoffed, his eyes falling to the floor.

"I admit…I wasn't entirely sure of Sasori as Kazekage. He seemed too mistrusting, too shady like Danzo himself." Hiruko clenched his fist and snapped his eyes, sharp as the tip of a new kunai, up at the Honored Siblings. "But I saw it with my own eyes. The Honored Siblings, protectors of Suna for years, meeting with shinobi from Kumogakure! I see now that believing in the old ways is a foolish ideal! If two such as you could be corrupt enough to betray your own village then I will follow Lord Kazekage's will!"

"Sasori's will is going to get everyone in Sunagakure killed you idiot," Chiyo snapped bitterly. The old puppet master looked around angrily at every one of the shinobi in her house. "He killed the Third Kazekage, the greatest Kazekage in the history of the village! And all for what? To make our village the loyal slaves of Konoha? We have more pride than that as Suna shinobi!"

"You spurn us for making alliances, yet what are you doing," Hiruko shouted. "Bringing Kumogakure into our very country, in the very walls of our home!" Chiyo scoffed, raising her hands up to ready herself. Hiruko scowled angrily, knowing the time for talk was over. The ANBU Chief raised his hand up then threw it down. The ANBU all charged, screaming as they rushed the Honored Siblings.

"Izumi run!"

"No," the young woman snapped at her master. Izumi prepared herself against an ANBU rushing her with a sword. In a flash, Ebizo knocked the man to the side with a kick to the head. The Suna shinobi rolled across the floor and squared himself across the old man.

"Izumi, please," Ebizo softly murmured. "You must go."

"I'm not leaving either of you alone!" Izumi scowled fiercely at Ebizo before looking at the nearest attacker.

"Don't make me tell you twice you little brat," Chiyo snapped. Izumi flinched a bit. She hadn't been called brat by Chiyo in some time. But she knew it was an attempt to make her point. Izumi was going to stand her ground though, and fight off the entire village if she had to in order to save Chiyo and Ebizo.

One ANBU threw a couple of smoke bombs forward at the three traitors. Chiyo whipped her head around, connecting chakra threads to the two bombs and then throwing them to another group of ANBU. The squad quickly scattered and shot up into the air.

"Wind style: great breakthrough!" Three ninjas threw their arms outward, unleashing a powerful blast of wind at their targets. Izumi, Chiyo, and Ebizo scattered. The Honored Siblings scowled, knowing what their plan was. If they were separated they would be easier to pick off.

Izumi spun around one ninja's forward thrust. As she spun around, she threw her leg up, connecting her foot to the groin of one unfortunate ninja. The man groaned then keeled over in pain. Izumi rolled over the man's back as two kunai attempted to strike her in the back. She turned around and shoved the man down with her foot violently. The ANBU smacked into the ground face first, presumably unconscious. The puppet user spun around, connecting one chakra thread to the handle of one kunai and lashed it at the nearest attacker. The man deflected the blade with his sword and continued forward. Izumi looked at the man she kicked in the groin, seeing a poison bomb sticking out of his pouch. She attached a thread to it, yanked it out, spun around, and lashed the bomb into the ANBU's face. The bomb erupted in a cloud of purple smoke, causing the ANBU to cry out before he hit the ground, coughing fitfully. It only took a few seconds before his body went limp.

Chiyo rushed across the room to aid Izumi and rejoin with Ebizo, but a group of five cut off her path. The puppet master scowled, knowing that they were going to be persistent about keeping the Honored Siblings separated. Chiyo smirked before pulling out two scrolls with the symbol for 'Mother' and 'Father' on them. Two clouds of smoke erupted, revealing two ordinary puppets. One of them had long brown hair, brown eyes, and an effeminate face. The other one bared a striking resemblance to Sasori himself. The ANBU gasped in uncertainty, looking to one another for a moment.

"It isn't polite to hold up a lady, boys," Chiyo stated sinisterly.

"Be cautious," Hiruko shouted. "Those are the Mother and Father puppets first designed by Lord Kazekage."

"Well, aren't you the well informed one?" Chiyo moved her hands swiftly to the side. Mother and Father quickly responded and shot towards the ANBU with a sword and bladed whip in hand.

The ANBU all scowled as they readied themselves for the fight. The Mother puppet with its sword cut right through one unfortunate ninja's blade and his neck in one swipe. The Father swung its whip forward, wrapping it around one shinobi before pulling back on it, cutting the ANBU to pieces.

Chiyo continued to move Mother and Father quickly to defend and attack, working as a pair together. She knew that without Ebizo to watch her back, and with many highly trained ANBU around her that puppets were a dangerous tactic to be using at the moment. However, they were also the best tactic.

"Cover me," Hiruko murmured to the two ANBU on either side. The ANBU Chief pulled out a scroll and quickly performed a summoning technique.

Chiyo and Ebizo quickly turned their attention to Hiruko, both knowing what he was up to. Ebizo quickly rushed towards the ANBU Chief in an attempt to try and stop him. Quickly, an iron tail shot out of the smoke towards Ebizo. The old man gasped and stopped immediately. Suddenly, Ebizo was yanked back violently, narrowly avoiding the strange tail. He looked back, seeing Izumi scowling at the strange iron tail.

The smoke began to clear, revealing a large puppet with eight legs, two arms with large pinchers, and the iron tail coming out from the back of it. On the puppet's back sat Hiruko, crossed legged with his arms extended out to the sides. The ANBU Chief huffed before slowly lowering his arms.

"Lady Chiyo…what puppet is that," Izumi asked.

"It's the Scorpion puppet," Chiyo replied, eyes hard on Hiruko. "Its how he got his name: Hiruko the Scorpion. It's very fast and very powerful when it comes to offensive attacks. Hiruko has been known to stand on equal footing with Kakashi Hatake using that puppet."

"What about it's defensive abilities Lady Chiyo?" Hiruko began to chuckle, causing the Honored Siblings and Izumi to turn to him.

The ANBU Chief stopped his laughter and looked up with a murderous look in his eyes, "A scorpion has no defensive abilities little girl. It has two pinchers and one poisonous tail and that's all it needs. My attacks are swift, accurate, and deadly. Why would I need defense when my opponents will be dead before they have a chance to attack me themselves?"

"Izumi, go get your puppets." The young woman looked to Chiyo who was pulling the Mother and Father puppets back towards her. "Hiruko may have a big mouth, but he is right. His puppet is very fast and deadly. I'm too old to keep up with him anymore. I'm relying on you, understand?"

"Yes ma'am."

"I'll create an opening for you," Ebizo offered. "Then you run into the basement and get your puppets." Izumi nodded to Ebizo before they both turned back to the ANBU.

The grunts were all stepping away next to Hiruko, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire. The two sides all stared each other down, waiting for the other to make the first move. Chiyo's finger twitched in anticipation before quickly glancing at Izumi and then back to Hiruko.

"NOW!" Mother and Father rushed forward, placing their free hand against the others. Izumi rushed towards the basement door with Ebizo following closely behind her.

"You fools!" Hiruko's left pinkie twitched. The arm on the Scorpion moved over to Izumi and opened up. Inside were thousands of needles, all dripping with poison. Ebizo noticed this and stopped immediately. However, Izumi continued to run for the door.

"Izumi," Chiyo shouted.

"DIE!" The needles launched forward.

Izumi turned her eyes towards the barrage of needles. The young puppet user dove forward, landed on her hands, rolled onto her feet, stood up and spun around, did a cartwheel, sprung up into the air, pulled her legs up to her chest and spun around before landing in front of the basement door in a second. Everyone stared in shock as every last needle that Hiruko fired was stuck in the wall and Izumi came out without a scratch on her. The ANBU Chief glared at the young girl who gave a taunting smile and wave before rushing downstairs.

Chiyo smiled as she watched Izumi run downstairs. The old puppet master turned to Hiruko and let out an amused huff, "She's quite the talented one isn't she?"

"Yes, I can't wait to break her…" Hiruko slowly moved his eyes to Chiyo. In a second he snapped his head towards the puppet master and added, "and turn her into a loyal Sunagakure shinobi!"

Chiyo scowled and sent the Mother and Father forward. Hiruko's Scorpion stabbed its tail forward. The two puppets under Chiyo's control moved apart then spun circles around Scorpion's tail. The puppets stopped and pulled back hard, but nothing happened. Chiyo gasped in shock, confused as to how steel wire wrapped around Scorpion's tail so many times hadn't sliced it to pieces. Hiruko chuckled before making Scorpion pulling its tail back. Chiyo caused Mother and Father to release their steel wires and move back towards their master.

"Did you really think that would work?"

"I don't know why I thought it would," Chiyo muttered bitterly.

"I took every precaution in making Scorpion perfect. His tail is durable enough to withstand even the sharpest of wind style jutsus. Durable enough to endure the strongest of earth based attacks, and the most crushing of water jutsus. There's nothing that can break Scorpion's tail."

"Are you ready to tell us who's behind all this Hiruko," Chiyo questioned. "It's obvious that Sasori didn't want me to live, but somebody would have to persuade him."

"Oh no persuasion really." Chiyo and Ebizo scowled fiercely at the new voice. The ANBU parted as a new figure concealed entirely in a hooded cloak entered the room. "All your grandson needed to hear was that you were plotting to overthrow Sunagakure."

Chiyo huffed bitterly, "Is that the lie you told him Kabuto? That I wanted to steal his precious position as Kazekage?" Kabuto lifted up his head, a glare coming off his glasses as he sneered wickedly. "He should know I'm too old to give a damn about becoming Kazekage! I retired so I could get away from the affairs of Sunagakure!"

"Then why the shinobi from the Land of Lightning hm? If you weren't planning to attack Sunagakure, you have an awfully strange way of not showing it."

"You're a pawn and a fool Kabuto Yakushi." The medic chuckled, finding Chiyo's words amusing on some level. Chiyo stepped back, giving her Mother and Father puppets more room. "I'll see you dead!"

Scorpion's tail shot forward. Chiyo gasped then sprung backwards, bringing her puppets with her. The old woman landed against a wall and fiercely swung her arms outward. Mother and Father raced forward. Hiruko chuckled as he caused Scorpion to shoot its tail at Chiyo. The old woman kept her eyes on her target, not caring about the attack coming her way. Suddenly, the tail bent from a violent blast of wind that came from the side. Hiruko scowled, turning his attention to where the wind came from. Ebizo stood there for a moment before turning to Chiyo.

"Get him sis!"

Chiyo cried out, pushing Mother and Father forward even faster to attack Hiruko. The ANBU Chief knew he wouldn't have enough time to spring up a defense fast enough. Suddenly, a blur shot upward behind the Mother and Father. As the blur slowed, it was revealed to be Kabuto, who had a wicked smile on his face. Chiyo gasped in shock as the Mother fell down in front of Hiruko on Scorpion's back, and the Father fell limply in front of a group of ANBU. Kabuto landed, pushing his glassed up his nose with one hand while holding up the other. Chakra flowed around the one he was holding up before slowly fading away.

"My chakra dissection blade can cut through your chakra threads. It's a useful jutsu for medical purposes, but against puppet masters it's also rather effective." Kabuto straightened his back and put both hands on his hips. "Without puppets, what chance do you have?"

Without warning, the ground suddenly caved in, bringing down nearly half of the ANBU behind Kabuto and Hiruko. The medic and puppet master gasped as they spun around in shock. Izumi shot forward, imbedding a kunai into Kabuto's chest. The medic cried out in pain as he was slammed hard onto his back. The young puppet user had a holder of three scrolls on her back, and two kunai holders on her thighs. Izumi turned her head up to Hiruko who shot Scorpion's tail towards her. The young puppet user did a graceful flip backwards, landing on the iron tail. Hiruko gasped in shock, quickly trying to move the tail to force Izumi off. The young kunoichi however rushed forward, running smoothly along the tail. Hiruko scowled, realizing she was using her chakra to stick to Scorpion's tail. Finally, Izumi sprung high into the air. Hiruko whipped Scorpion's tail around in an attempt to impale Izumi. The young woman twisted her body around, avoiding the tail and lashed her hand out. Hiruko was confused for a moment before he looked down and saw Mother start twitching with life. The ANBU Chief stood up to try and get away, but the Mother puppet sprung up and slashed its sword in an upward motion. Hiruko managed to dodge the attack easily, but something was wrong. The ANBU Chief's eyes widened in shock as he saw half of Scorpion go limp.

'_She infused chakra into that sword through a puppet to cut my strings?'_

The Mother spun around, attempting to behead the ANBU Chief. Hiruko ducked under the strike and attempted to reconnect his chakra strings. However, Izumi landed in front of him in a crouched position. Hiruko's eyes widened in horror as Izumi screamed with all her might, throwing her fist up with all her strength. Her fist landed, giving a loud, satisfying crack upon impact. Hiruko was lifted off his feet and thrown off his puppet with the attack. Izumi spun around in the air before landing on the back of Scorpion.

"Well now," the young puppet user mused. "Let's see what this thing can do." Hiruko shook the shock and pain out of his head before looking up at Izumi riding his puppet.

"That's my girl," Chiyo whispered.

Izumi attached her chakra strings to the puppet Scorpion. She looked to the ANBU behind her who were all gapping behind their masks. Izumi moved her hand around forcefully. Scorpion spun around, lashing its tail out to whip across the remaining ANBU. They all cried out, slamming into the wall, getting through out of windows, or smashing into anything else around them. Izumi looked back down at Kabuto who was just now getting off the ground and pulling the kunai out of his chest. The wound quickly healed as Kabuto looked up at Izumi with a smirk on his face.

"Now that's impressive. You seem to be the first person who could remove Hiruko from Scorpion. That's a feat to be proud of."

"I'll be even prouder once your dead at my feet you little treacherous snake!"

Kabuto laughed manically as he sprung backwards, throwing his blood stained cloak off in a fluid motion. Izumi moved one of Scorpion's claws up at Kabuto and unleashed a barrage of needles. Kabuto flipped backwards off the wall and dove quickly towards the ground. Izumi moved the puppet's claw down to follow Kabuto, trying to hit him with at least _one_ needle. The medic stuck his hands out in front of him and rocketed through the ground. Izumi scowled in frustration then turned to Hiruko.

The ANBU Chief was distancing himself from his puppet, glaring daggers at Izumi. It was obvious that he was furious that his favorite little toy was stolen from him. This caused a cocky smirk to grace Izumi's lips. Hiruko snapped his head to the side, seeing the Father coming towards him. The ANBU Chief snarled angrily before ducking under the puppet's wooden whip.

Chiyo scowled, quickly turning Father around and attacking again. Since she was only controlling one puppet at the moment, her speed and skill with the puppet had increased greatly, and she was able to keep Hiruko at bay.

Chiyo turned her head once she heard the ground break apart behind her. Kabuto popped out of the floor and gripped Chiyo's ankles. He surged his chakra through her legs, causing a pained cry to escape Chiyo's lips before she fell to her knees as her legs went numb. Kabuto popped the rest of his body out of the ground and pulled his arm back, chakra flowing around his hand to make a blade.

"Now you die," Kabuto whispered.

"NO!" Izumi moved Scorpion to try and stop Kabuto. The medic swung down with his arm, making an arc of chakra towards Chiyo.

Just before the blade could hit, Kabuto's arm was forced to a halt by his wrist. The medic and Chiyo looked over, seeing Ebizo standing between them, holding Kabuto's arm firmly in place. The medic glared at the old man for a moment as he tried to wrench his arm free. Ebizo pulled his head back then exhaled a wave of poison gas in Kabuto's face. The silver haired man's eyes widened in shock before he screamed in panic. Ebizo let go of Kabuto's wrist, letting him step out of the poison gas he already got a lungful of. The medic started coughing furiously, his face turning red and veins bulging out of his neck and forehead.

"You okay sis," Ebizo asked. The old man turned to his sister who lied motionless on the ground. "Sis? Sis? Oh no, Chiyo! Wake up!" Izumi's eyes widened in horror as she turned to the Honored Siblings. Tears began to well up in the corners of her eyes as grief overcame her entire being.

And just like that, a fit of laughter exploded out of Chiyo's mouth.

Ebzio simply gapped in shock while Izumi fell hard on her back in disbelief. Chiyo attempted to stifle her laughter, but a few tears escaped the corners of her eyes. "Oh I just couldn't resist," Chiyo murmured to herself.

Ebizo let out a light chuckle before sitting his older sister up, "That was a good one sis. You really had me going there for a minute."

"ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?" The Honored Siblings turned to Izumi, who was fuming with rage as she pointed an angry finger at Chiyo. "OF ALL THE TIMES TO PLAY THAT SICK TWISTED JOKE AND YOU DECIDE TO PLAY IT WHILE WE'RE FIGHTING FOR OUR LIVES?"

"Oh don't be such a spoil sport," Chiyo murmured as Ebizo lifted her off the ground. The older sibling leaned against her brother, using one hand to regain control of the Father.

"Spoil sport—you have to be freaking joking…" Chiyo brought the Father puppet next to her and her brother. Izumi shot one last glare at Chiyo before they both turned their attention to Hiruko. "Just you and us now ANBU captain. Care to run away while you still can?"

"Izumi, the Scorpion is hollow inside," Chiyo informed. "We can store away in it and get out of here."

"Okay," Izumi murmured as she began looking around the puppet. "Where does this thing open at?"

"How am I supposed to know," Chiyo snapped angrily. "I didn't make that blasted thing!"

"And you think I did," Izumi snapped back. Ebizo sighed heavily. Of all the times for them to have an argument like this it had to be now.

"Well find it! I taught you well enough didn't I? Find the damn thing!" Ebizo gasped in shock, feeling something strange behind him and Chiyo. He looked over his shoulder, seeing Kabuto with a murderous intent in his eyes ready to strike the Honored Siblings down.

Ebizo quickly pushed his sister away and began forming hand signs while turning to Kabuto. The young medic screamed in fury as he thrusted his arm towards Ebizo's face. The Honored Sibling crouched low to the ground, jerking his head to the side to avoid Kabuto's chakra blade. The attack only made a slight cut across the old man's face. Ebizo slammed his hands together, finishing the last hand sign for his jutsu.

The old man roared with all his might, unleashing a powerful gust of wind in the face of the young Kazekage's assistant. Kabuto's eyes widened against the wind, which blew his hair and cheeks back while throwing his glasses right off his face. Ebizo grabbed Kabuto's arm, holding him in place as he continued to put more and more chakra into his attack. Tiny, concentrated blades of wind began to shoot out, cutting across Kabuto's face. The medic cried out in pain, thrashing his head around in an attempt to escape.

Chiyo and Izumi both smirked, knowing what Ebizo was planning. Hiruko however gasped in shock, knowing all too well what was going to happen.

Ebizo continued to blow wind in Kabuto's face, giving him tiny cuts and scrapes across the face. Finally, the hold man tightened his grip on Kabuto and closed his mouth as forcefully and strong as he could. A spark was created, causing the last gust of wind to carry a fireball. The fireball covered Kabuto's face in its searing flames. Ebizo released the medic, letting him step back and cry out in agony. The Honored Sibling let out a light sigh, trying to catch a second wind as he watched Kabuto writhe around.

"That simple little trick," Hiruko murmured. _'Lord Ebizo has a few hollow teeth in his mouth filled with gunpowder. Once he bites down hard enough on one, it causes a tiny spark, which when combined with that much wind coming out of his mouth results in dangerous close combat.'_

"Well that takes care of you then doesn't it Yakushi," Ebizo murmured. The old man suddenly gasped as he felt numbness hit his entire body like an anvil. Ebizo groaned softly, fell to his knees and then onto his side.

"Lord Ebizo," Izumi shouted frightfully.

"This better not be a sick attempt to get back at me," Chiyo shouted angrily.

"Oh it's no act…" Izumi and Chiyo gasped lightly before turning their attention over to Kabuto. The young medic turned around, his face covered in burns, skin seared or blistered, and pieces of flesh completely burnt away. Shockingly enough to Chiyo and Izumi, Kabuto's flesh started slowly healing itself over. "Before I attacked, some of the poison fog I got a whiff of stayed in my saliva. I licked the edges of my hand, so when I attacked, all I needed was a small graze anywhere on the skin for my saliva to get in. In this case, Lord Ebizo, you were your own downfall." The medic started chuckling while Ebizo twitched in a vain attempt to move.

Hiruko chuckled in approval. He knew Kabuto was crafty and devious, that's why he was the Kazekage's assistant after all, but what he just pulled right there was marvelous.

Kabuto bent over and picked his glasses up off the floor and put them squarely back on his face as he finished healing. "Hiruko, take care of Lord Ebizo. I'll deal with Lady Chiyo and the little girl."

"Of course Kabuto-san," Hiruko replied as he picked up a sword from one of his comrades. The ANBU Chief and Kazekage's assistant walked towards each other. Hiruko kept his gaze fixated on Ebizo while Kabuto did the same for Chiyo and Izumi.

Ebizo groaned as he attempted to move. He looked at both Chiyo and Izumi longingly. He knew his fate was sealed tonight, but he didn't want it to end the same way for those two.

Chiyo scowled at Kabuto, knowing he was going to come after her, the defenseless old woman, first. The medic sneered before darting forward.

Izumi knew she couldn't do anything from the top of Scorpion. She quickly ditched the puppet and sprinted towards Chiyo to help her first, then Ebizo.

Kabuto leapt into the air and swung downward with his chakra dissection blade. Chiyo raised her right arm to block, which Kabuto laughed at. To the medic's shock, Chiyo's arm opened up and projected a chakra force field which stopped Kabuto's attack cold. The medic's eyes widened in shock. He never would've guessed Lady Chiyo had used a puppet's arm in place of her real one. Kabuto scowled, remembering about a mission before he was Sasori's assistant where Chiyo's arm got crushed.

The medic looked up just as Izumi jumped over Chiyo and slammed both feet into his face. Kabuto's head was thrown back, followed shortly by the rest of his body. Izumi twisted her body around and caught herself on her hands, barely avoiding crashing on top of Chiyo.

"Go save Ebizo!" Izumi nodded, quickly springing to her feet and rushing towards Kabuto and Ebizo's direction.

The medic groaned as he started to stir. Izumi hopped onto the back of Kabuto's head and slammed his face back into the ground, smashing his glasses before she continued forward.

Hiruko stood over Ebizo, glancing up at Izumi and smiling at the fact she wouldn't make it in time. Hiruko lowered his eyes to Ebizo, pulling the sword back to strike him. "It's over for you traitor…" In the blink of an eye, Hiruko plunged his sword through Ebizo's chest. Izumi stopped dead in her tracks, eyes wide with horror. Chiyo gapped in shock, her lower lip trembling in disbelief.

Hiruko chuckled coldly before slowly pulling his sword out of Ebizo's chest. Suddenly, the old man's arms shot forward and latched onto Hiruko's arm. The ANBU Chief gasped in shock, eyes wide and fixated on the dying figure in front of him.

"Your poison is shit Yakushi," Hiruko screamed.

Kabuto frowned, looking over at the ANBU Chief and the youngest Honored Sibling. "It's not my poison idiot," Kabuto whispered to himself. "The poison gets into the bloodstream and kills the person that way. Piercing the heart would be a smart move to anyone who was going for a fatal kill. But in this case, the massive amount of blood loss leads to my poison being next to useless."

"Lord Ebizo!" Izumi rushed forward. One of the many things Chiyo taught her was how to combat poisons. If Ebizo was to have a chance of survival it was going to be Izumi.

"I'm going to finish this quickly…" Hiruko gasped at Ebizo's words. The old man reached up and pulled down his robe. Hiruko's eyes nearly popped out of his head at what he saw. Ebizo's upper body was covered with paper bombs. "Farewell…"

Izumi reached out, tears flying out of the corners of her eyes as she ran, "NO!"

"Sorry Izumi…sorry sis," Ebizo whispered.

Her scream fell on deaf ears as an explosion went off, engulfing both Ebizo and Hiruko in fire and smoke. Izumi stopped dead in her tracks, tears now flowing freely out of her eyes.

"No…" The young woman fell to her knees, overcome with grief. "Ebizo…"

Chiyo scowled in pain, closing her eyes shut and turning away from the sight. "Stupid old fool…" Despite the harsh words, Chiyo's heart was weighed down from anguish at the loss of her younger brother.

A pained, blood curdling scream was heard, causing Izumi and Chiyo to snap their heads back up. Hiruko stumbled out of the smoke, howling in agony as he gripped his left shoulder. His arm had been completely blown away, leaving only a gaping, bleeding wound.

"Oh dear," Kabuto murmured. The medic appeared by Hiruko's side in a flash. His hand began to glow brightly as he attempted to stop the bleeding if nothing else.

"Izumi," Chiyo shouted. "We must get out of here while we still can!"

The young woman was still mourning the loss of Ebizo. She barely even noticed Hiruko was still alive or that Kabuto was healing him.

Chiyo scowled fiercely, frustrated that her apprentice wasn't listening to her. The old woman grabbed the nearest rock she could find and hurled it at Izumi. The rock hit the young puppet user in the back, helping pull her back to reality.

"Get over here now! We're leaving!"

Kabuto turned sharply to Chiyo. He looked back at Hiruko, "You don't mind if I leave early do you?"

"You…you can't! I'll die!" Kabuto scowled, knowing that if Chiyo or Izumi got away that there would be consequences.

Izumi rushed to Chiyo's aid quickly. A kunai suddenly landed between the two with a paper bomb attached to it. The two female puppet masters gasped in shock before an explosion went off.

Izumi sprung out of the smoke, her eyes scanning for anything that could have caused the explosion. The familiar clattering of a puppet caused the young woman to turn around suddenly just in time to duck underneath the slash of a sword wielding puppet. Izumi kicked the puppet in the chest to distance herself from it.

On the ground, Chiyo withstood the explosion using her chakra shield. She scowled once she noticed all the puppets in the room. "The Puppet Brigade…" Izumi landed next to Chiyo and gasped in shock once she saw that they were surrounded by puppets. "That was their plan. Use the ANBU as the first wave to break the windows and blow holes in our home to allow for the Puppet Brigade an opening to take us down."

Across the room, Kabuto chuckled sinisterly. Despite the fact that Chiyo immediately recognized the plan, it was far too late for her to change anything.

* * *

Outside, the Honored Siblings' Mansion was surrounded by Sunagakure's most elite puppeteers, all of which were using one to three puppets. "We've got them surrounded my lord," one puppet master stated. A figure stepped forward, hands clasped behind his back and a slight scowl on his face.

"Good," Sasori murmured.

* * *

Izumi lifted her arm to reach for the scroll on her back to prepare for battle against the puppets. Chiyo knew at this point it was a suicide mission. If the Puppet Brigade was here then that meant that there was no hope for any of them.

"Granny Chiyo," a voice called out. Both Izumi and Chiyo's eyes widened when they heard Sasori's voice. "You're surrounded, beaten, and you've already lost old man Ebizo. With the Puppet Brigade here even you don't stand a chance of surviving. I'll give you one chance to turn yourself in and stand trial before the Alliance's Leaders."

"HA! Like you'd spare me anyway! I'd rather die than have to prolong it by being judged by you devils!" Izumi looked back at Chiyo with a pleading look. She was worried that Chiyo actually thought they wouldn't make it out alive.

"So be it, but would you want the same fate for Izumi too?" Chiyo snarled in fury. Sasori was crossing the line. "Come peacefully and I promise we won't have to kill you on the spot." Chiyo's lips pressed into a hard line. Izumi wondered what her master was planning. She knew all too well that look meant Chiyo was plotting something.

"Izumi…I want you to go into my room and take _that_ scroll." Izumi's eyes widened before a bright smile crossed her lips.

"You're right! If you use those puppets we can win and-,"

"No…" Izumi stopped herself, confused by what Chiyo meant. "I want you to take that scroll, and those ten puppets, and run." The apprentice's eyes nearly popped out of her head at those words. Chiyo groaned as she slowly rose up to her feet. "Sasori is after my head. That would be bad enough for the world to lose someone so opposed to the Alliance…"

"So it's true…you were giving information to the Land of Lightning weren't you…?" Chiyo simply nodded. Izumi's eyes fell to the floor, unsure of what to make of that new bit of information.

"I had to Izumi. This Alliance of theirs is growing too rapidly. I sought out all of their enemies, even the Mizukage. The ninjas that Hiruko most likely saw were my informants, coming to tell me that the Raikage and Mizukage were talking over a treaty to join against the Alliance."

"But Lady Chiyo…you told me that war should be prevented at all costs. War only brings pain, strife, leaves children…orphaned." Izumi's eyes softened a bit at the last words. "You're helping bring about more war upon the world."

"I realize that Izumi." Chiyo's eyes softened as well before she heaved a heavy sigh. "But if their Alliance takes over the world then all hopes, all dreams will be crushed and rewritten to Danzo's rule. He's an evil, evil man Izumi. I've seen the horrors of war. And I know in the end wars bring nothing but misery and ruin to everyone around them." Chiyo's eyes hardened in newfound resolve. She attached her chakra strings to the Mother and Father puppets and brought them closer to her. "This is one war that I believe, if fought, will be for the right reasons."

"Any war is never fought for the right reasons!" Chiyo closed her eyes at Izumi's outburst. The young woman's voice broke a bit, but her resolve was rock solid. "Of all the people…Lady Chiyo you preached to me never to get involved in wars. And look at what _you've_ done! I get that Danzo and his Alliance, if they rule the world, would be bad for all of us, but do you realize how many lives you've helped destroy by volunteering in this stupid war?" Chiyo features drooped down in sadness. Izumi wiped away the tears building up in the corners of her eyes before glaring at her master.

"That's why I didn't want you to know…" Izumi gave a cautious, skeptical glance at Chiyo. The puppet master sighed, letting her arms drop heavily to her sides. "I've fought in damn near every war Sunagakure has been apart of. My poisons, my puppets, my jutsus, all were used by hundreds of shinobi from our village, used to kill, slaughter, and murder countless people. My hands…this wrinkled old hands are already stained with blood. You didn't know about my treason, and you had no part in it, I made sure of that." Izumi's eyes widened, a light gasp of disbelief escaping her lips. Chiyo raised her arms up, causing the Mother and Father to straighten up. "Your hands aren't stained with blood. And I intend to keep it that way. If my actions helped even in the smallest way to destroy this Alliance, then a little extra blood won't matter to me."

"Lady Chiyo…"

"That's why I want you to take that scroll in my room and run. Run out of the Land of Wind. Hide yourself from the world and stay out of this war if at all possible." Izumi closed her eyes, letting out a heavy sigh before nodding.

"I understand…" She knew that she would leave Chiyo to her doom. But Izumi knew that this was Chiyo's way to atone for her sins, and if she had to she'd drag Izumi away herself. "Lady Chiyo…thank you for everything…"

"Think nothing of it child. You're a sweet, intelligent girl with a good head on her shoulders. You have the potential to be a far greater puppet master than I one day. I'm entrusting you with my greatest, and most dangerous weapon."

"I understand the responsibility that comes with using it Lady Chiyo. I swear I'll never forget you." Chiyo nodded, shooting one last glance at Izumi. The young woman nodded, knowing that they were done with their farewells.

"GO!" Chiyo lashed Mother and Father out while Izumi bolted for Chiyo's room.

The puppets around the two shot towards Izumi. Chiyo spun around, sending Mother and Father to defend Izumi. The young woman managed to swiftly and gracefully move between each and every attack the puppets threw at her while not missing a beat. Chiyo managed to destroy a couple of puppets while defending Izumi.

The young woman finally made it to Chiyo's door and swiftly opened and closed the door behind her. One of the enemy puppets opened its mouth, firing four ball shaped bombs at the door. Chiyo moved Father into the doorway, activating its chakra shield to absorb the blast.

Izumi quickly started tearing apart Chiyo's room, trying to find the scroll. Finally, she looked under the bed and saw a small chest. Izumi pulled the chest out and opened it up. Sure enough, there was a white scroll with the symbol of Chikamatsu on it. Izumi quickly closed the chest and noticed something strange. There seemed to be a door in the flooring under Chiyo's bed. Izumi smiled in admiration of the clever old woman.

* * *

Chiyo spun around, her arms moving around viciously as she defended herself from the overwhelming Puppet Brigade. Unbeknownst to Chiyo, Kabuto started walking towards her bedroom. He wasn't about to let Izumi slip out of his grasp.

Izumi pulled up the floor board, smiling as she sensed Kabuto coming towards the room. She put the flooring back over her head and disappeared. In Chiyo's room, Izumi had set up an elaborate trap of steel strings and paper bombs, all set to go off once the front door opened.

Kabuto grabbed the knob of Chiyo's bedroom door, turned and opened the door. As soon as he poked his head in, Kabuto was greeted by a large explosion.

Izumi felt the ground above her shake from the explosion. She was shocked to see that there were even more paper bombs set up in the underground tunnels. Izumi could only guess that they were set up to blow up once the entrance was opened the second time to cover their tracks. It was a smart idea Izumi admitted.

The young woman quickly started running down the tunnels, hoping they led somewhere safe or far away from Sunagakure. As she ran, her heart was anchored down with grief upon having to leave the woman who raised her, her mentor, her best friend behind to die.

* * *

Chiyo spun around, destroying another puppet before she noticed the ANBU trapped in the basement started coming back up to the house. The old woman turned, seeing something move out of the corner of her eye. The Scorpion used one of its large claws to smash the Mother between its pinchers. Chiyo gasped in shock before the Father soon met the same end. The old puppet master scowled fiercely at the one who controlled the Scorpion. To her surprise, it was her grandson, the Kazekage, Sasori.

"Sasori you-," Chiyo's words were cut off when the Scorpion's mouth opened up and shot out a few steel cables. They wrapped around Chiyo's limbs and her stomach, lifting her off her feet and raising her eye level with Sasori. The old woman glared daggers at her grandson, who simply smirked back at her. "You're a cowardly little worm, you know that? Always the servant, the lapdog of Danzo!"

"As much as I care to hear your petty little words, it's time to close the book on us grandma." Chiyo gasped sharply in pain. She looked down, seeing another steel cable pierce her stomach. The cable however, came from her grandson. Chiyo's eyes were as wide as saucers when she looked up at Sasori.

"You…you're a…" The cable snaked around behind Chiyo and slowly started wrapping itself a few times around her neck. Sasori chuckled gleefully as he started choking Chiyo. The old woman attempted to gasp for air in order to curse Sasori.

"Farewell…you old witch." Sasori's steel cable quickly closed around Chiyo's neck. The old woman's body went limp as her head plummeted to the ground.

* * *

Izumi suddenly fell to her knees and froze. She didn't trip over anything, but she did feel an overwhelming pain fill her heart. "Lady Chiyo…" Izumi fought with every fiber of her being to not breakdown and bawl her eyes out then and there. She could practically hear Chiyo telling her not to waste tears and move on. Izumi forced herself back up to her feet and ran as fast as she could. No matter how far she ran though, Izumi knew that she could never escape her grief and guilt over letting Chiyo and Ebizo die for her.

* * *

Sasori looked down at his grandmother's head before causing Scorpion to drop the rest of her to the ground. The Kazekage looked around as the Puppet Brigade and ANBU started running around the house.

Sasori got off the Scorpion and walked towards Kabuto, who stumbled out of the smoke, his clothes all but burnt away and his skin healing and covered with soot. "Izumi got away," Kabuto stated between coughs. Sasori looked inside Chiyo's room, noticing a few ANBU looking at the flooring.

"Get back!" The ANBU looked at their Kazekage and quickly vacated the room. Sasori launched a chakra string and attached it to the flooring. With one swift yank of his arm, he pulled the flooring up. This triggered a large explosion in the room, followed by several smaller, muffled explosions. Sasori scowled before turning on his heels and heading to the exit. "Crafty little girl covered her tracks…"

"We can start digging immediately my lord," one ANBU said.

"Don't bother. By the time you get through that rubble Izumi will be long gone. Increase patrols throughout the country. Izumi most likely has Chikamatsu's scroll, and she'll want to flee the country." A group of ANBU nodded then rushed off. Sasori turned to another ANBU squad, "Send message to our allies in the other countries. An S-class criminal, Izumi from Sunagakure. Wanted in connection with the traitors, the Honored Siblings and stole one of Sunagakure's most valuable scrolls. Large bounty to capture her."

"Bounty eh," Kabuto murmured. "Recruiting Kakuzu to help might be useful?"

"Perhaps. If he even comes back with Gaara that is." Sasori looked around at the mansion. He looked at the smoldering remains of his grand-uncle and then over to the body and head of his very own grandmother. The corner of his lips tugged at a smirk when he realized he felt nothing for their loss. "We have a solid report?"

"I heart Chiyo admit to Izumi that she was working with the Land of Lightning, and that the ninjas we saw were informants to let Chiyo know that the Raikage and Mizukage were indeed talking over a treaty."

"Then send word of that to Danzo. I'm sure he'll want to know that the other two major nations of the world are conspiring against us." Kabuto nodded then walked away.

Sasori looked around the house for a moment, in the place he was raised. It was destroyed and falling apart. Truly worthless. Sasori turned to his men and spoke loudly, "I want a squad to work on getting the wounded out of here, and a pair of you to pile up the dead bodies somewhere else. The rest of you, search every inch of this house for anything of value. Any scrolls, ninja tools, weapons, puppets, I want them _all_. Do you understand?"

"Yes Lord Kazekage," the shinobi shouted in unison.

Sasori smiled as he turned around and started heading back to his village. He had much to prepare for.

**

* * *

Holy crap nuts! I leave my inbox alone for two days and I get 40 new freakin emails? You guys must really miss this story! I apologize for not being able to update sooner, but this site freaked out with the updates. Luckily, thanks to RasenganFlame, I was able to update and post these two chapters =) I appreciate all the support you guys showed, reviews and even those story favotires. Yes, even you guys. I just don't have time to send everyone who adds one of my stories to their favorites a message anymore, BUT I APPRECIATE IT NONETHELESS! Keep spamming my inbox with reviewy and favy goodness!  
**


	28. On Towards the Land of Snow

The Hokage was almost happy for the first time since he became Hokage. Word had reached him about how the Honored Siblings were discovered to be traitors to the Alliance, and were soundly dealt with. The Honored Siblings were the loudest and more convincing of all the shinobi who opposed the Alliance. Now that they had been dealt with, most of those voices would be silenced. What's more, Chiyo was killed herself by her own grandson, the Kazekage Sasori. This displayed just how ruthless and effective the Alliance could be. The entire world though Chiyo was the greatest puppet master, even better than Sasori. Now that the rumor was silenced, it only grew people's fear and respect for Danzo and his allies.

With the death of the Honored Siblings came news that the Lands of Lightning and Water had indeed formed a pact of their own, and were going to declare war on Konoha and the other nations. This gave Danzo the edge, for he spent all his time focusing on building his military might instead of spreading his forces thin across the world in an attempt to find Naruto. If he could win this upcoming war, then there would be nowhere for Naruto Uzumaki to hide.

His first order of business to increase his power, which would undoubtedly tilted the balance to his favor in this war, would be to bring the Land of Snow into their inner circle. A team of youths had already been assembled, and were leaving in a few hours. Orochimaru's Serpent Five, Kakashi's team, Guy's team, and Anko's teams were all recruited to go to the Land of Snow, and offer support in anyway they can against the local rebels.

The plan was simple: either they would succeed, or they would die trying to aid Doto Kazahana's forces which would display how dedicated Konoha was to helping them. Either way, Danzo saw opportunity.

* * *

"WAAA-CHOO!" Hana turned her head to Naruto who was bundled up in a blanket, shivering furiously with snot trailing out of his nose.

"Bless you," Hana said with a sympathetic smile on her face. The boy hadn't been through any environmental training as far as she could tell. In order to become a Chunin, Hana had to go through a few intense exercises where her body had to adapt to extremes of heat, cold, or anything else. She was glad to see it paid off. "Do you need another blanket?"

"I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I need to b-b-b-b-be back home where my bones aren't f-f-f-frozen!" Hana rolled her eyes then headed back towards the cabin.

"I'm going to get you another blanket. Don't move."

"I-I-I wouldn't if I c-c-c-could." By this time, Hana was already inside. She moved past the slumbering Akatsuki shinobi in the bunks and headed towards the extra pillows and blankets.

Hana stopped when she saw a figure huddled over in the corner. It took only a second for her to figure out it was Princess Koyuki Kazahana. She hadn't slept as far as Hana could tell, and she still had the same sour expression on her face. Hana sighed as she grabbed a couple of blankets. The princess was the least of her concerns at the moment. The young Inuzuka looked over at the princess, staring at her for a moment to see if she wasn't frozen stiff from the cold.

"You'll catch a cold," Hana finally said after noticing Koyuki didn't have a blanket.

"Whatever…"

"You don't have to be bitter, because I'm being nice."

"You all kidnapped me and you're basically throwing me back to my uncle who you admit is evil," Koyuki murmured, her eyes glazing over in a bit of anger. "How is that nice?"

"If you recall: Akatsuki saved you. Konoha ninjas were the ones who killed your movie cast and crew. We're trying to help you princess. If Konoha _did_ capture you, then you would have been thrown back to your uncle. We're trying to keep you from Danzo and Doto's clutches." Hana walked up to Koyuki and dropped one of the blankets in front of her. "I was saving that for Naruto. But knowing him, and the fact he was assigned to protect you he'd probably give it up for you anyway."

Koyuki scoffed, looking up at Hana with a fierce glare, "That kid hates me. Why the hell would he sacrifice anything for me?" Hana's eyes narrowed to match Koyuki's intense stare.

"Naruto Uzumaki doesn't hate you. He hates your attitude and your bitchy behavior and treatment towards others." Koyuki scoffed, turning her head away from Hana. The fiery kunoichi was far from finished with this conversation though. "You hate the fact you're a princess, and you hate that you were a movie star. So what the hell makes you think you're better than everyone else? What right do you have to judge others because they're fighting for their hopes and dreams? Just because you threw yours away doesn't mean you have to make them as miserable as you by trying to belittle them."

"Hopes and dreams never come true," Koyuki murmured softly. "Akatsuki wants to take on Danzo's Alliance, three of the Five Shinobi Nations, and they hardly have enough shinobi to fight against just one nation. Explain just how you're going to beat half the world when you're just a little group of misfits and criminals."

Hana's glare hardened on the princess before she pushed the blanket closer with her foot, "I wouldn't expect you to understand spoiled bitch. You may not believe that dreams can come true, but one day you're going to be proven wrong. I just hope I'm there to say I told you so." With that said, Hana turned on her heels and headed back outside, leaving Koyuki to wallow in self pity.

Naruto was still shivering as Hana put a second blanket over his shoulders. The older woman smiled at him as she put the blanket snuggly around the boy's body. "Is that any better?"

"A-a little. Th-thanks Hana-chan."

"It's no problem. If you need anything else just call for me okay?" The Jinchuriki nodded once as his whole body started shivering. Giving one last smile, Hana turned around and walked towards the end of the ship.

Jiraiya stared off into the distance, a cloak covering his body from the chilling wind that blew against him. Behind Jiraiya, Itachi sat down on the railing of the ship, looking out to the side. Hana walked up on deck, smiling over at Itachi who had yet to notice her.

"What's the news," Hana asked. Both Itachi and Jiraiya looked over at the young Inuzuka who made her way over.

"Konan's secondary team are going to rest up for a day once they get back to the base and then head out to the Land of Snow to aid us," Jiraiya stated. The Sannin smiled, turning his body towards Hana. "Either way, it seems like we're going to win with the Snow's resistance."

"I certainly hope you're right Master Jiraiya," Itachi murmured. The Sannin's eyes drifted over to Itachi. The young Uchiha turned his attention over to Jiraiya before continuing. "This battle is more than just fighting. We've got to win the support of the Land of Snow as well, and insure that no amount of their technology falls into Alliance hands."

"Always the cynic," Hana scoffed, folding her arms tightly across her chest. "You just can't help yourself can you?" Itachi rolled his eyes, causing Hana to crack a smirk.

"I'm well aware of what's at stake here Itachi," Jiraiya spoke with an even, yet hardened tone. "I didn't bring you along to lecture me now did I?"

"Of course not. My apologies Jiraiya-sama." The Sannin looked back forward to the horizon. In the back of his mind, Jiraiya hoped that Naruto would be ready for the challenges he was about to face.

* * *

Sakura was a little nervous. She was once again assigned to another mission into another country, this time the Land of Snow. She wouldn't feel as anxious if they had at least _one_ Jonin teacher with them. The most powerful one amongst the group was Orochimaru's top student: Kimimaro. For obvious reasons, he was put in charge of the team. They were to travel through the Land of Fire, tread along the western boarder of the Land of Waterfalls, and then cut through to the Land of Earth's Granite Port. Once there, they would set sail for the Land of Snow, up towards the northern tip of the globe.

Intel and mission details were very, very sparse. All that they were told is that there were a group of rebels in the Land of Snow, and that they were being sent to help take care of it. Their teachers and superiors ordered each and every last shinobi on the mission to treat Doto Kazahana with the same respect that they do their own Hokage. They were also informed that the mission was also to show the skill, power, and dedication of the Wrath of Fire so that the Land of Snow would wish to join the Alliance.

What worried her at the moment was traveling through the Land of Waterfalls. It was a warzone between Hanzo's forces and Takigakure's current leader, a man fittingly enough named Taki. The two countries had been at war ever since the Land of Waterfalls' Jinchuriki was taken in by Hanzo. The way Sakura heard it was Takigakure hated and despised their Jinchuriki, showing her little to no value. The Seven Tailed Jinchuriki, Fu, ran away from the village, and found herself in Hanzo's care.

Since the war began, tales had spread about Amegakure forces pushing through the Land of Waterfalls, taking on any and all shinobi Takigakure could throw at them. The Takigakure shinobi were forced to use guerrilla tactics, and had been able to stand on equal footing with Hanzo's forces. That was until Fu joined the fray. She had once again managed to tip the balance back into Hanzo's favor, destroying entire hideouts, entire platoons of Takigakure forces with ease. It's rumored that Fu may have studied under Hanzo directly, having been a military genius in his own right.

It eased her mind knowing that the Serpent Five had previously been involved in Hanzo's efforts to defeat Takigakure, but even she knew that letting her guard down would be stupid. The shinobi of Takigakure were very skilled in effective, and swift ambushes. Stories had been told that a squad of eight could take out a platoon of thirty if Takigakure could get their forces set up correctly.

"Tayuya," Kimimaro spoke in a low voice. "Do you sense anything?" The redhead closed her eyes and made a hand seal.

"Very low suppressed chakra…could be nearby animals?"

"Hinata," Kimimaro snapped, his eyes narrowing. The newly made Chunin quickly activated her Byakugan.

"We're surrounded," Hinata stated in a grim tone. Sakura scowled, her eyes examining the entire area around them. She couldn't see anyone, and she didn't hear anything. She started to become anxious.

"Stay calm," Kimimaro ordered quietly. Sakura had just noticed that they hadn't stopped walking the entire time. Most likely this was to avoid the ambush squad catching on that they had been discovered. "How many?"

Before Hinata could speak, a series of kunai flew out towards her. Sakura noticed the coming blades and quickly knocked the Hyuga heiress down. One kunai struck the pink haired kunoichi in the arm, causing her to cry out in pain.

A group of blurs shot out of the trees and zeroed in on the Konoha Chunin. Kimimaro quickly threw his arm up and shot five bone bullets. The bones ripped through one Takigakure shinobi, killing him instantly. Three more Taki shinobi surrounded Kimimaro, all scowling as they waited for him to make the first move.

Kidomaru quickly sprung out of the way as one Takigakure shinobi attempted to strike him down with a long sword. The six armed teen then quickly formed a series of hand signs and spat out a wide spread web that wrapped around the enemy shinobi. Kidomaru laughed as he paced backwards and spat out six golden kunai looking weapon. The Takigakure shinobi cut through Kidomaru's web and then rushed him again. The Kidomaru grinned then rushed forward as well, crossing blades with the enemy combatant.

Sakon and Tayuya sprung back to the younger members of their team, "Uchiha, Hyuga, you two are with Tayuya! Nara, Akimichi, and Aburame, you're with me! Rock Lee, Zaku, and Dosu, you're with Jirobo!"

"Sakura's hurt right now," Zaku snapped as Dosu fumbled about with Sakura's medical supplies.

"She got hit in the arm," Sakon replied angrily. "She can defend herself or become useless in battle!"

"Zaku, you go, I can take care of Sakura," Dosu ordered. "Sakon's right: it's just a small wound."

"I'll help pinkie if you just get your lazy ass moving," Tayuya practically screamed. Zaku growled angrily before he sprung off towards battle. He always hated when he was wrong. "Make it fast boy." Dosu quickly soaked a piece of cotton in rubbing alcohol and placed it over the wound. Sakura winced in pain before Dosu started wrapping her arm up. "FASTER YOU FUCKER!" Dosu snapped his head up, seeing four Takigakure shinobi rushing at them.

Tayuya spun her flute around her hand then quickly raised it to her lips in preparation for the coming enemies. And just like that, the four shinobi were blown away by a massive blast of chakra. Tayuya nearly screamed a string of curses, but was thrown back by the force of the blast alone before she could. Dosu raised his arm up, shielding his eyes and masked face from the wind and dirt flying up while holding Sakura to the ground.

All eyes turned to the blast which was now a smoking ditch that ran through the forest. Nobody moved, and everyone was wondering where the blast came from. Silence came over the forest, the only sound were the flocks of birds that were startled by the blast.

"Hello ladies and gentlemen!" Everyone whipped their heads around to a nearby tree. A young woman with tan skin, short, pale green hair, and orange eyes stood on a nearby tree branch, casually leaning against the base of it. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything too important." The Taki shinobi all stepped back, a few trembling in fear. Without sparing another second, the enemy shinobi all fled for their lives. The young woman's eyes narrowed, her face hardening into a menacing glare. "Don't let them escape…" A group of shinobi all jumped out past the young woman, giving chase after the Taki shinobi.

Sakura gasped, noticing one of the shinobi passing by was a shinobi from Amegakure. The pink haired kunoichi looked over at the green haired woman who was now smiling warmly at the Konoha shinobi. She jumped down from the tree branch and started approaching the group as two more Ame shinobi came out of the bushes to escort her.

"Aren't you five ever going to get tired of me saving your butts," the green haired kunoichi asked mockingly. She leaned to one side, putting a hand on her hip and smirked smugly at the Konoha shinobi.

"We had it handled," Kimimaro stated.

"I'm just messing with ya boney butt," Fu replied, waving her hand about dismissively. "I was ordered by Lord Hanzo to escort you all through the Waterfall country safely. After that you all are on your own."

"Fine with me," Kimimaro murmured. The Chunin in charge turned to the rest of the shinobi behind him. "Get up! We're moving out now!" The rest of the Serpent Five moved quickly to rejoin the group.

Zaku scowled angrily at Kimimaro for his impatience. He didn't even care that one of his teammates was injured did he?

"Come on." Zaku turned his head to Sakura. Her arm was wrapped in a now red bandage. She walked past Zaku, who wanted to ask her if she was fine. Dosu nudged Zaku in the side and moved past him towards the group. The black haired boy sighed in annoyance and followed his teammates.

'_Forgive me for caring,'_ Zaku bitterly thought.

* * *

Jiraiya stood before the twelve Akatsuki shinobi on the ship with him, his back turned to them. He brought them all up to the deck because they were entering the Land of Snow. He wanted everyone on standby in case if they got attacked. The shinobi of the Land of Snow had the advantage, and were not to be taken lightly under any circumstances.

"I don't like this," Jiraiya murmured. "There should be some type of border patrol around. Why haven't we encountered any?"

"We might have just gotten lucky," Naruto thought out loud. Jiraiya looked back over his shoulder, giving Naruto a half expectant look. "Right, sorry for being optimistic."

"Can you smell anything Hana," Jiraiya asked, turning back to face forward.

"Nothing. Then again water and ice have no scent. They would just need to hide in one or the other to be untraceable."

"Be on guard," the Sannin ordered. _'I knew I should've brought a sensor…'_

Naruto narrowed his eyes, looking around in the vast, frozen ocean before him. He swore he'd be the first to spot something fishy. In the distance, something broke out of the water.

"There's something over there," Naruto shouted. All eyes turned towards the side, seeing something large coming at them.

"What is that," one Akatsuki senior questioned. Itachi activated his Sharingan, focusing in on the approaching object.

The young Uchiha gasped before snapping his head to Jiraiya, "It's a giant whale!"

"Summoning jutsu," Jiraiya scowled. "Anyone who can use water style get over on that side now!" Three shinobi moved to the end of the ship and prepared themselves.

Before they could create a single hand sign however, the boat rocked violently. The Akatsuki shinobi all cried out as they struggled to keep their balance. Jiraiya grabbed the railing to stay up and looked out from the ship. Ice started to creep out from below the ship, most likely from ninjutsu.

"Up above," Hana shouted. Jiraiya looked up, seeing a woman with a strange pair of metal wings above. She threw some kunai down below at the ship.

"Scatter," Itachi ordered. The Akatsuki shinobi all jumped off the boat and onto the ice. Jiraiya stayed behind however, remembering that Koyuki was still inside the ship. The Sannin performed a series of hand signs then exhaled a massive fireball.

The kunai were engulfed in fire, melting the ice bombs tied to the end, but now the blades themselves were on fire. They struck the wooden ship, the fire spreading quickly.

"Damn it," Jiraiya growled.

"I got her Pervy Sage!" Jiraiya gasped, whipping his head around just as Naruto ran to the cabin below.

"Idiot knucklehead!" The Sannin turned back around, watching as the ice continued to spread, forming hills and icebergs, soon creating a bowl-like iceberg in which they were trapped inside. Enemy shinobi started to emerge from the ice, every last one of them masked. They easily outnumbered Akatsuki forces greatly. "This is going to be a pain…"

Itachi and Hana stood side by side, looking out at all the enemy shinobi around them. "These are…overwhelming odds," Itachi stated softly.

"No shit," Hana snarled. "Try not to get too soft of me sweetheart?"

"I think I can make an exception in this case." Hana smiled reaching back and smacking Itachi's rear end. The young Uchiha couldn't help but blush brightly in embarrassment before glaring at his girlfriend. Hana gave an innocent grin in response. Itachi rolled his eyes then turned back to the enemies before them.

"Princess Koyuki," Naruto shouted. The boy started coughing from the smoke, covering his mouth with his arm. "Where are you princess?"

"Help! Someone help me!" Naruto immediately started running towards the sound of the voice. Koyuki was surrounded by fire, cornered in the rear of the ship. "Naruto!"

"Hold on princess! Naruto Uzumaki is here to save the day!" Naruto started focusing his chakra to his feet. Immediately, the boy shot forward and through the flames. Naruto grinded to a halt, helping Koyuki to her feet. "Are you alright?"

"How are we going to get out of here," Koyuki asked between coughs. Naruto looked around for anyway to escape without roasting the princess alive.

Itachi slid backwards across the ice. With two kunai in hand, Itachi started blocking the endless barrage of shuriken that came flying at him. Two Yuki ninjas had set up strange piece of machinery that, with a crank, could fire dozens of shuriken per second. Itachi and Hana had quickly been ordered to take them out, but that was proving to be extremely difficult for the duo.

Hana ran across the ice on all fours, eyes focused on the two turrets that were focused on Itachi. The Inuzuka kunoichi sprung forward and started spinning around. Her Tunneling Fang tore through both turrets, reducing them to a pile of splinters and metal. Hana spun around, sliding across the ice. She used her claws in an attempt to slow down and eventually did. The two turret using Yuki ninjas charged the kunoichi.

Jiraiya grabbed one Yuki shinobi by the wrist, holding him firmly in place. The ninja gasped in shock before Jiraiya spun around, screaming in rage before he hurled the man towards more of his companions. Jiraiya then threw a kunai with a string of paper bombs attached to the end. The kunai stuck into one man then exploded, taking the rest of the Yuki shinobi with him.

'_This isn't good. Where's Naruto with the princess?'_

Just then, a massive booming noise was heard. The Akatsuki and Yuki shinobi all turned around, seeing a pillar of water and shards of ice shoot up out of the ground. The water began to fall back down, revealing a shirtless and wet Naruto holding a bundled up and dampened Koyuki in his arms. Naruto landed on the ice, falling to his knees while setting Koyuki gently on the ground. The boy's entire body was shaking furiously from the freezing waters, and his teeth were clattering noisily. Eventually, Naruto started falling to the side, his body freezing up on him.

Koyuki ripped the hood of Naruto's jacket off her head and hugged the boy tightly in an attempt to warm him up. "You idiot!" Koyuki clutched Naruto tighter, feeling the boy shaking in her arms. A shadow loomed over her, causing the princess to gasp and turn around.

A Yuki shinobi stood over the princess with his sword drawn. The princess scowled as the man reached for her. Koyuki turned away, closing her eyes tightly.

An arrow tore through the air and pierced the Yuki shinobi through the forehead. The shinobi gargled on his own blood before falling back dead.

Koyuki opened her eyes then looked up to the wall of the ice bowl. A group of men dressed in armor with swords and arrows drawn started charging downhill, screaming loudly.

The Yuki shinobi, now being the ones outnumbered, began to retreat. The archers began to sling arrows at the retreating shinobi, hitting only a few while the rest managed to get away.

Shizune and Jiraiya quickly ran up to Naruto and Koyuki. The medic managed to get her cloak off as did Jiraiya. They tucked both around Naruto as tightly as they could, but this hardly seemed to warm him up.

"Bring him over here," one of the armored men called out. Koyuki and Shizune looked over to the man who was standing by their burning boat. Jiraiya immediately lifted Naruto off the ground and rushed towards the now burning pile of wood. "Give him this," the man offered, taking off a fur pelt he wore over his armor.

"Thank you." Jiraiya took the pelt and wrapped it around Naruto as well. "I take it you all are part of the resistance?"

"And I take it you're all apart of Akatsuki," the man shot back. Jiraiya nodded, looking up at the man. "I'm Sandayu. I'm the leader of the 50th brigade."

"You don't have any ninjas in your resistance do you," Jiraiya asked. Sandayu shook his head, a glum look coming over his features. "Damn. Should've asked for more reinforcements from base then."

"We can hold our own against Doto's forces Master Jiraiya. We've managed to keep them at a standstill, despite all of their jutsus and technological advancements. But now with the aid of Akatsuki, I'm sure that we can take back the Land of Snow from that treacherous Doto!"

Jiraiya would've been more motivated, but at the moment he was more focused on making sure Naruto didn't die from the cold first. The boy at least went from shaking violently to a light shiver.

The other Akatsuki shinobi started to form a circle around Naruto and Jiraiya while a few of the Snow's resistance followed after the Yuki shinobi.

* * *

Yahiko entered Konan's room, noticing that the woman was nowhere in sight. He sighed heavily whenever he tilted his head towards the side where he saw his love's silhouette getting dressed and suited behind a thin paper wall.

"I can reassign someone else to this mission," Yahiko finally said.

"Nope." The orange haired man groaned, rolling his blue eyes. He leaned one arm against the stone wall in frustration.

He hated that Konan was being sent on mission after mission after mission for Akatsuki without so much of a day's rest in between for her. Or for the both of them to spend time together. Still, Konan believed strongly in what Akatsuki represented. They both did. But that didn't mean that they should put their relationship on hold.

"Konan…"

"Don't wanna hear it," the woman interjected. The wall of paper suddenly dropped to the ground as Konan walked out, fully suited up in her Akatsuki garb. "This is a big chance for Akatsuki or the Alliance, depending on how it plays out."

"I know Konan, but-,"

"No buts," Konan snapped, placing a single, thin finger over Yahiko's lips. "I promise after this I'll take a break. _We'll_ take a break, spend some time together. Hell, we might be able to set up a double date with Hana and Itachi." Konan smiled while Yahiko scowled. The blue hair woman sighed, slightly annoyed that her joke went unappreciated. "Stop being a baby. There's going to be time for the two of us to be together alright? Besides, Jiraiya sensei is going to need all the help he can get in taking care of Naruto."

"So that's the reason you're going," Yahiko asked in an impatient tone. "To babysit Naruto for Jiraiya sensei! He's the kid's godfather! He needs to spend more time with him but it seems like you're acting as more of a parent than-," Konan's eyes hardened over, giving Yahiko a dangerous, and deadly glare. The orange haired man stopped his words in his mouth, but his look was still firm.

"Naruto is like my little brother Yahiko," Konan said, pointing her finger in said man's face. "I care about him just as much as Jiraiya. I'm not going to the Land of Snow _just_ for Naruto; I'm going to benefit Akatsuki's efforts and to hinder Danzo's. Got it?"

Yahiko stared into Konan's hard, unwavering eyes. After a long moment of silence, Yahiko sighed in defeat, his eyes drifting to the side, "Yeah…" Konan continued to glare at her love for another moment before snapping her finger down and walking out of the room. Yahiko leaned against the side of the wall and sighed again, "Stupid, stupid, stupid…"

Konan scowled as she marched through the halls of the base, past a few random shinobi that she paid no mind to. She had enough on her mind without having to get _that_ bullshit from Yahiko. Leading a squad that was nearly twice the size of Jiraiya's, and full of so many kids. She hated leading kids into life or death situations like this. But Tsunade and Jiraiya, both of whom alone had nearly twice the experience in battle as Konan, Yahiko, and Nagato combined, agreed that getting these kids involved in battle now would prepare them for what was ahead. That and word of the coming war happening sooner than expected has spread most of Akatsuki's older and more senior members thin.

Konan sighed heavily, rubbing her forehead with her index finger and thumb. She had to admit that getting the kids involved in a civil war in a country as sparsely populated as the Land of Snow would help prepare them for a real war, but she couldn't help but feel conflicted that this was all still too early.

It helped ease her mind that she at least had a few shinobi in this platoon who were older and more battle hardened. One of which being Deidara, whom she was glad to be working with again. Tsunade and Yahiko both were surprised by the request to add him to the team. Konan knew that Deidara could take orders easily enough, and wasn't stupid enough to disobey a smart command. Though the artist would never admit it out loud, he held a certain level of respect for Konan. Another shinobi she wouldn't have to worry about would be Haku. Working alongside the Demon of the Mist, Haku was use to bloodshed, as horrible as it was for a boy his age. He had no problem killing, and again unfortunately very good at it. There were a list of others in the same category of course, but not a whole lot Konan had worked very closely with before.

The blue haired woman walked out into the large, open area just before the exit, seeing her platoon all chatting amongst one another. Off to the side she saw Haku speaking with Neji, Ranmaru, and Hanabi. A pang of sorrow went off through her heart, seeing what could possibly be Akatsuki's two youngest members coming with her to participate in a civil war. Yahiko, Nagato, and she were about their age when they all lost their families to the horrors of war. Now Konan had to take these kids at such a tender age and thrust them into the frontlines. She hated having to do this to them. Her mind screamed at her to tell those two children to stay here and not worry about fighting for a stupid war.

"You two," Konan called out. Four young heads turned towards her direction. Konan pointed to the two youngest of them and motioned for them to come towards her. Ranmaru and Hanabi both rose up to their feet and approached their senior. A look of doubt was written across Konan's mind as she looked down at them. She knelt down to eyelevel with them both, looking from Ranmaru and then to Hanabi. "You don't have to come along you know." Both of the children seem surprised by this, giving uneasy glances to one another before looking back at Konan. "I don't want to force you two to witness war until you're ready. If you want me to, I'll leave you both at base. You don't have to be heroes, you don't have to prove anything to anyone. If you're scared then you can stay behind."

Silence filled the air between the trio. Konan waited for them both to back out. Finally, Hanabi and Ranmaru both looked into Konan's light orange eyes with resolve covering their faces.

"Lady Konan," Hanabi spoke, "My life in Konoha was…miserable. I was a slave to my father, and my sister. I wasn't a daughter, I wasn't a sibling. I was a thing, an object. My life was empty and not my own. After joining though…after all Naruto-kun, Neji-kun, and all Akatsuki itself has done for me…this is the least I could do."

"And before Akatsuki, I lived my life for only one person," Ranmaru added in. "Jiraiya showed me what Akatsuki's members stood for. They didn't live their lives for one person, but rather they lived for each other. To help each other and to help everyone grow stronger, and to make the world a better place. I want to live my life like that: to make this world a better place. I'll do whatever it takes."

Hanabi wrapped her arm around Ranmaru's neck, pulling him into a hug. Both children smiled at Konan, Ranmaru blushing lightly. "We're ready and willing to help in any way we can Lady Konan," Hanabi finished. Ranmaru added a nod of agreement.

Konan couldn't help but smile. It wasn't a happy or warm smile. It was more of a reluctant, tired smile. She knew she couldn't argue with these kids. They were hell-bent on their decision. Once they got a taste of battle, they'd crash. Konan still remembered her first sight of war. She cried. She cried, sobbed, and wept for hours and hours. She couldn't stop no matter how hard she tried. She didn't want to see it, she didn't want war to ever happen again.

Ranmaru and Hanabi would break as Konan did back then. And she swore to herself she would be there for the both of them in any way she could.

"Alright," Konan murmured with a nod. "You two can come along. But stick close to Haku and Neji okay? Do what they say."

"Yes ma'am," Ranmaru replied with a beaming smile.

"Understood," Hanabi bowed her head in thanks. The two quickly turned around and ran back to Neji and Haku. Konan made note to talk to them both later, to make sure that those two would be watched closely.

"Everyone," Konan shouted. All heads turned to the woman in charge who walked towards the center of the room. "We're moving out in five minutes, got it? You have five minutes to get everything together and get ready to move! I'm not holding the group up so you can take a little bathroom break or anything like that understand? Five minutes!"

A few members of the platoon started fumbling with their luggage while others went back to talking to one another. Konan turned around, seeing someone approaching. She scowled fiercely before Nagato stopped in his tracks a few feet away from his childhood friend.

"If Yahiko said you're joining this mission, I'm telling you you're _not_."

"N-no that's not why I'm here," Nagato stammered. Konan narrowed her eyes skeptically. "I promise I'm just here to see you off and wish you luck." The blue haired woman sighed, turning her head to the side. Nagato leaned out a bit to try and observe Konan's expression a bit better. "Trouble in paradise I take it?"

"Don't worry about it Nagato." The redhead put his hands on his hips, giving Konan a concerned look. Reluctantly, Konan turned her head to look Nagato in the eyes. "It's just Yahiko being Yahiko. I promise it's not a huge issue."

"Alright," the Rinnegan user murmured. He put his hand on Konan's shoulder, causing the blue haired woman to turn her head to him. Nagato smiled at his childhood friend, "Be safe in the Land of Snow okay?" Konan couldn't help but return the smile and added in a small nod.

"You got it." Nagato nodded then left Konan. The paper user watched her friend fondly before turning back to her platoon. "We're heading out everyone! Get ready to move!" Konan walked through her platoon and headed towards the exit with shinobi all following up behind her.

* * *

It took nearly a two full days, but Sakura and the others made it to Granite Port. She had to admit it was larger than she originally expected. Most of the Land of Earth from what she saw during her last trip was that it was very old fashioned. The Granite Port was a large, thriving port with ships leaving and entering for trade or sailors coming in for supplies. Being nowhere near any major bodies of water like this, it was something strange for most of the younger Konoha children.

Kimimaro led the group through countless sailors and shinobi alike towards their designated ship. Apparently he and the Serpent Five were the only ones who knew where they were going.

"SAKURA!" The large group of Konoha shinobi stopped and turned to the sound of the screaming voice. A young woman in red suddenly exploded out of the crowd and threw her arms around Sakura's neck, hugging the young girl tightly.

"K-Kurotsuchi," Sakura said in disbelief. The Iwa kunoichi stepped back, grinning from ear to ear as she held her arms out.

"That's me!"

"Are you apart of the Iwagakure squad coming with us," Kimimaro asked. Sakura and her teammates all turned to the older Chunin in shock.

"That's me," Kurotsuchi replied. "I'm the leader of the squad. You can call me Kurotsuchi. I take it you're Kimimaro Kaguya right?"

"That's right," the white haired boy said. "Where's the rest of your squad?"

"One sec." Kurotsuchi turned around, cupping her hands around her mouth, "HEY GUYS! I FOUND OUT NEW TEAMMATES!"

Four more shinobi moved through the crowd. One was a very tall and robust man with a huge nose and a wide grin on his face. The other was a young woman with short brown hair, wearing a dark purple kimino with pink trim, and thigh-high stockings of the same color. The other two wore similarly styled robes, but in different colors. One was taller than the other, had long blonde hair and wore glasses. The other was stockier, older, and had a full beard.

Kurotsuchi turned back around with a large grin on her face, hand on her hip and thumb pointed back over her shoulder, "We're ready and able to help you guys in the Land of Snow!"

"Very well," Kimimaro said, turning around to face forward. "Follow me." The pale shinobi led the way while the rest followed behind. Kurotsuchi put her arm around Sakura's shoulders, still grinning from ear to ear.

"Miss me," the young Iwa kunoichi whispered.

"I didn't know we were getting reinforcements," Sakura replied in shock. Kurotsuchi simply snickered in response.

The Konoha squadron stood before a large ship built from a very heavy and sturdy metal. Sakura simply gapped in awe at the size of the ship.

"That is one…very large ship," Zaku stated in awe.

"It was built by Iwagakure," Kurotsuchi stated. "We're working on building a navy to help combat Kirigakure. Granted we can't make a navy as large as theirs in such a short amount of time, but we're going to try our damndest to make a better quality of ship."

"Isn't Konoha or Suna helping out at all," Dosu asked, shifting his eyes to his kunoichi ally. "I mean at least Konoha should be helping in some way right?"

"No," Kurotsuchi replied, shaking her head. "We're the only ones closest to the sea, so we've been put in charge of navel forces. Sunagakure is in charge of intelligence and espionage. Amegakure sets up special forces and all that. Last but not least, Konoha leads the charge into battle, being the closest to both Kumo and Kiri."

"This is sounding pretty intense," Choji murmured frightfully as he started munching on potato chips.

"But if we can get the Land of Snow to join the Alliance, then we have a huge advantage right," Shikamaru questioned, looking to Kurotsuchi and Kimimaro.

"That's right," Sakon replied instead of Kimimaro. "That's why this mission is so important, got it brats? Failure isn't an option."

"Whatever," Sasuke muttered with his hands in his pockets. "We can't fail a mission as easy as this one. Most of the resistance is just a bunch of old men with no ninjutsu to back them up."

"That type of arrogance will get you killed child," the Iwagakure shinobi with the beard spoke. Sasuke shot a glare in the man's direction. "You haven't experienced war, nor have you fought on the frontlines before. If you have nothing but a flock of old men with no ninjutsu, what do you do? You use dirty tactics, underhanded tricks, you do anything you can to survive. The Land of Snow's civil war has been going on so long it's probably no longer about liberation. It's more about their survival now more than anything else."

"Oh come now brother," the glasses wearing man spoke, "You're frightening the children." Sasuke and Hinata glared angrily at the taller man who simply smirked down at them.

"Both of you zip it," Kurotsuchi snappishly barked. The kunoichi sighed, resting her forehead against her fingertips. "Babies…"

"Are we going to head out or just sit here and bitch at each other," Tayuya asked impatiently.

"I'm with her for once," Kidomaru added, pointing two of six thumbs at Tayuya.

"Everyone get onboard, then we're moving out," Kimimaro ordered. The pale shinobi and his allies all started to move up the boarding ramp onto the boat.

In the crowd, a figure in a brown hooded cloak moved through countless people towards the Alliance vessel. The person managed to sneak on and rush towards the inner workings of the ship without a trace. Once they got to the bottom, the person removed their hood, revealing light purple hair with her bangs covering her right eye.

Izumi leaned against the wall and slid down to the floor. She sighed heavily, looking at the ceiling. The young puppet master still wasn't entirely sure what she thought she was doing. Something inside her said that it was the right thing by going to the Land of Snow.

* * *

Koyuki sat outside the medical tent in front of a fire. She was by herself, bundled up underneath a blanket to try and keep warm. Looking off in the direction of the medical tent, Koyuki wondered how Naruto was doing. She scowled for a moment before looking back at the fire before her.

From a distance, Hana looked at the young princess and scoffed before turning back to Itachi. "You really don't like her do you?"

"She should just go in there and check on him for the love of-,"

"She's stubborn," Itachi stated with a smirk on his face. "She's hard-headed and will never admit that another person is right when she's wrong." Hana shifted her eyes up at Itachi, glaring furiously at him while he simply smiled knowingly. "Sound familiar?"

"I would at least check up on an annoying brat who risked his life to save mine," Hana fired back defensively. Itachi only continued to smile, causing his lover to cross her arms and glare harder at him. "What?"

"As I recall it took several trips to the medical wing for you to finally visit me."

"You weren't nearly as good looking." Itachi laughed before stepping closer to Hana. A challenging smirk cross Hana's lips before Itachi wrapped his arms around her. Their noses touched, both staring into the other's eyes. "Why don't you talk to her? You know how to sway those stubborn girls don't you?"

"I got lucky with you," Itachi replied in a whisper. "It took a lot of genjutsu." Hana closed her eyes, stifling her laughter which rippled through her body. Itachi leaned forward, touching his forehead against Hana's. "Give the princess a break. She's been through a lot of what you have. Don't be so quick to judge alright?"

Hana rolled her eyes before resting her head under Itachi's chin, "Blah…"

"Thank you," Itachi replied through a smirk. Hana huffed softly, barely audible for Itachi to hear.

"Am I interrupting something?" Hana scowled fiercely before turning her head to a grinning Jiraiya.

"I assume this is important," Itachi questioned with a dry look.

"Just thought I'd let you guys know that Naruto is in a stable condition, and he'll be just fine." The two lovers smiled at the news before they turned to each other. "I'll just leave you two alone now," Jiraiya murmured with a perverted grin on his face. Both Hana and Itachi shot a glare at Jiraiya who quickly exited the tent.

Hana looked back through the open flap of the tent, seeing that Koyuki was no longer seated in front of the fire. A small smile crossed her lips, proud of the arrogant princess before turning around to her boyfriend.

Koyuki entered the medical tent. She looked as Shizune brought a shivering Naruto another blanket. "Naruto…" Both the medic and blonde looked up, seeing the princess standing before them. Shizune quickly smiled at Naruto then moved across the tent.

Koyuki approached Naruto and sat on the edge of the bed. Her eyes looked almost bitter before shifting them over to the Jinchuriki. Without saying anything, Koyuki threw her arms around the boy and hugged him tightly. The blonde gasped softly, at a loss for words before eventually doing the same.

"Thank you," Koyuki whispered.

"Don't sweat it," Naruto replied with a grin. Koyuki huffed, a small smile coming across her face. "Hey princess…?"

"What?" Naruto leaned back out of Koyuki's arms, bundling up into a tight ball beneath the layers upon layers of blankets.

"Why is it you don't want to come back to the Land of Snow? You seem to hate it so much, even though it's your home." Koyuki sighed, closing her eyes.

"That's a little personal don't you think…?"

"I saved your life remember?" Letting out a soft sigh and rolling her eyes, Koyuki leaned back before staring at the young Jinchuriki. Wordlessly, the princess reached into her jacket and pulled out a necklace. Naruto leaned forward with a curious look in his eyes at the sparkling crystal on the end of the necklace. "Huh, what's that?"

"The Hex Crystal," Koyuki replied. "It was said to unlock a great treasure in the Land of Snow that my father hid away." Malice and contempt filled Koyuki's eyes as she gazed upon the beautiful crystal. "But there is no treasure in the Land of Snow. Only violence, hatred, betrayal, and war." Koyuki stuffed the crystal back down her jacket, eyes still full of hatred as she looked at the ground. "This land is cold and harsh, even to those born here. It's brutal living here, and not just because of he weather. This land has become colder since my uncle Doto took control from my father. It's fitting to match his cold heart."

"Then maybe the Land of Snow just needs a leader with a warm heart," Naruto gently said.

"Then I'm the wrong girl to lead it." Naruto gasped softly, looking at the princess in stunned silence. Koyuki's eyes hardened even more than before, growing as cold as ice. "I'm not a princess anymore. I don't care about this stupid land or its civil war. I don't care about the Alliance or the Five Great Nations. I don't care about any of it."

"Well princess…" Naruto and Koyuki looked at the entrance of the tent, seeing Sandayu enter. "One thing is for certain: the Land of Snow needs a new leader. And you're the daughter of its former leader, which makes you the rightful heir."

"Just because I have the Hex Crystal doesn't make me the heir," Koyuki snapped. The confused Jinchuriki looked between the general and the princess.

"The Hex Crystal is the equivalent of a crown for the ruler of the Land of Snow," Sandayu explained, keeping his eyes on Koyuki. "As well as unlocking the Land of Snow's most valuable treasure."

"What is this treasure," Naruto asked. "I mean Doto basically controls the country. He shouldn't need a symbol like the Hex Crystal, so this treasure must be pretty important."

"The Land of Snow gets a steady income by selling its technology to very select customers, and at very high prices," Sandayu explained. "Doto has used this wealth to increase technological devices to prepare for war. He's going to join a side, but we don't know which, nor do we want to get involved." The old general's face fell, softening immensely. "We're all tired. My men want nothing more than for this civil war to be over and start rebuilding the Land of Snow. But that can never happen while Doto rules the country."

"So…even if we help you guys…you're not going to help Akatsuki," Naruto asked. Sandayu nodded, his expression apologetic. Naruto's eyes narrowed before he looked down at the ground.

"We've known this all along Naruto," Jiraiya said, entering the tent. Sandyu stepped aside to let the Sannin in. "The Land of Snow needs to rebuild. This civil war has torn the country apart, and we're not going to make them fight a world war with us."

"But Akatsuki needs all the help it can get," Naruto snapped. "We're one small group fighting the entire world! I mean we need at least one country to-,"

"Naruto," Jiraiya barked. The blonde stopped mid sentence and scowled in defeat. "We're not selfish, and we're not going to force the Land of Snow to help us. But if we don't help them, then that leaves the door open for Danzo's Alliance to bring them in, which is bad for everyone. Everyone on this mission is aware of the loss, and that there is no gain, and they're ready to accept that. That's why the team is so small because many of the other Akatsuki thought the way you are now."

"We're not completely ungrateful for your actions here," Sandayu added with a soft smile. "We'll be sure to give Akatsuki all the shinobi technology it needs to battle against Danzo. Just because we can't spare our soldiers doesn't mean we can't help out Naruto-san."

"I understand," the blonde murmured. Jiraiya sighed through his nose, not entirely sure whether to believe the boy or not.

"We have a mission tomorrow," Jiraiya stated. "To sabotage and destroy a local factory that cranks out Doto's war machines. We destroy the factory, confiscate any tech we can salvage, and we deal a huge blow to Doto's operation."

"The Land of Snow is sparsely populated," Sandayu explained. "Doto doesn't have more than a handful of factories, a couple of which we've managed to destroy ourselves. He's down to less than a dozen, so any factory we can destroy is just one more wound to his operation. Not only that, but this was one of his major factories before we started our guerilla warfare a few months ago."

"I've already got a demolition plan set up to destroy the factory, as well as a way for us to sneak in," Jiraiya replied. "Sandayu also has some men on the inside who said they'll help us once they heard the princess was with us. Naruto, you're temporarily relieved of your duty to watch the princess to help us on this mission."

The headstrong Jinchuriki grinned and then nodded, "You got it Pervy Sage!"

"I'm putting one of my top lieutenants in charge of your safety princess," Sandayu said. "Once the team mobilizes to take out the factory, our militia is going to head out in a different direction, and we're going to meet up at another point in two days. I promise you'll be safe."

"Whatever," Koyuki murmured in an indifferent tone.

"That's also when we'll be meeting up with Konan and the reinforcements," Jiraiya told Naruto, a smile on his face. The blonde grinned back at his teacher and nodded. "Sandayu, we need to finish up the final stages of the plan. We head out tomorrow, got it?"

"Yes sir Pervy Sage," Naruto exclaimed. The Sannin and Snow general smiled at the boy before leaving the tent.

* * *

An alarm went off on the boat. Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku ran through the bowels of the ship to head up on deck. "This had better be important otherwise I'm gonna be pissed," Zaku exclaimed.

"You weren't doing anything useful anyway ya lazy bag of bones," Dosu replied snappishly.

"It's the principle! You don't wake a man up from his nap without good reason!"

"Will both of you shut up," Sakura barked, rolling her eyes. The duo astonishingly enough closed their mouths before entering up on deck. "What's the problem?" Wordlessly, Tayuya pointed her flute out to sea. The three Genin looked forward, seeing four small wooden ships and one larger metal ship coming towards them. "What's going on…?"

"Aren't you just the slow one," Sakon questioned smugly. "Those are warships from the Land of Water. Wonder what they want with little old us?"

"If they delay us then they will die," Kimimaro stated. Before Sakura had time to register this, the boat shook violently after a brief booming sound was heard.

"I'd say that's more than trying to delay us," Kidomaru shouted. Quickly, the curse mark started spreading over his body. "I'll hit em up high with my bow and arrow!" Using two hands, Kidomaru shot his webs up to the masts and pulled himself up high. "Tayuya should stay back and use her giants from a distance!"

"He's right," Kimimaro agreed. "Sakon, you, your brother, Jirobo, and Nara's team take the ships on the left of the Kiri Destroyer. Uchiha, Hyuga, and Akatsuchi you're with me to take that Destroyer head on! Kurotsuchi, you take the Aburame boy and the Kamizuru trio and take the ships on the right!"

"What about us," Zaku asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"You three are gonna have to protect OUR ship," Kidomaru called out from the masts. The three Chunin looked out to sea, seeing a group of Kiri shinobi rushing towards their vessel.

Kimimaro shot his arm forward, a white sword hiding under his sleeve, "Kill any who get in your way, but move forward to the ships! Those are our top priority!" With that, the squads shot off the deck of the ship, heading towards the Kiri fleet.

Tayuya sat down on the metal ship, crossing her legs as she bit her thumb, drawing blood. She ran it across her wrist, which had a series of tattoos on it. A large cloud of smoke went off behind the redhead. The redhead quickly put her flute to her mouth and began playing. Out of the smoke, three giants shot off the deck of the ship and rushed out into the water, one giant following each team.

"Whoa," Zaku murmured in amazement.

"Manji formation," Dosu shouted. Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku all formed around Tayuya, who was slightly annoyed that Zaku's rear was in her face. "How many are coming towards us?" Zaku narrowed his eyes as the two forces collided with each other.

Kimimaro quickly and swiftly cut through four Chunin without missing a beat. Behind him, Sasuke, Hinata, with Akatsuchi bringing up the rear, followed behind the leader of the Serpent Five. The Kiri shinobi had the same tactics as the Alliance: move to the battleship and take it out.

Kurotsuchi ducked under one Chunin's sword and slashed through his stomach with a kunai. She shoved the man to the side, letting his body sink into the water before continuing forward.

Behind each force, Tayuya's giants had smashed, crushed, and crunched a handful of soldiers before following behind the three squads. Though all three teams had taken out a handful in total, there was still a considerable amount of Kiri shinobi coming for the Alliance vessel.

The two forces had moved past each other, heading towards the other's ships. "Uh…looks like most all of them are coming after us boss," Zaku murmured.

"Great," Dosu scowled.

"We can handle this," Sakura said reassuringly. "We've been through worse. Just keep in formation and we can get through this!" The two boys nodded and hunkered down while the Kiri shinobi continued towards them.

* * *

**Insert cliffhanger, leaving the beginning of the next chapter open for an awesome high-seas battle here! SO glad I updated this chapter lol. I was running out of juice. Hopefully for the next one I can crank it out faster. Also, I'm getting a little confused about whose with Jiraiya in the Land of Snow from Akatsuki, so I figure more than a few fans might be confused as well, so here's the list:**

**Jiraiya, Naruto, Itachi, Hana, Shizune, and twelve other random shinobi currently in the Land of Snow. On Konan's team: Konan (duh), Deidara, Neji, Haku, Ranmaru, and Hanabi and a lot of other random shinobi. I don't like to give a specific number, because then I'm bound by it. Get it, got it? Good. Hope you enjoyed the update all =)**


	29. Sabatoge and Reunions

Kiri shinobi stood on either side of their boats on the water. At least one per ship placed their hands on the water, performing a summoning jutsu. "Tayuya, they're summoning things," Kidomaru called from up high on the masts. The tactician fired a bow into the Kiri shinobi who were approaching the Alliance ship.

Tayuya changed the tune she was playing, causing the Doki to spring forward in front of the three squads. One of the giants wielding a club roared in fury as a crab equal in size came out of the water and stopped it. The giant covered in bandages was assaulted by a group of tentacles belonging to an octopus. The last giant roared as it grabbed a shark its size that lunged at it in midair.

The squads rushed past the battling summons and headed towards the ships. Kimimaro kept his eyes deadest on the Destroyer in front of him. "So how do we take out something that large," Sasuke asked, noticing the ship's cannons turning to them. "I hope you have a plan!"

"Pierce the hull and let it sink," Kimimaro replied. The Destroyer's cannons fired upon the shinobi, causing them to scatter.

Kidomaru scowled in anger as he formed one bow after another and kept launching them into the crowd of Kiri shinobi, _'Really wish we could've gotten more shinobi on this mission!'_ The spider boy fired one last bow before looking down at the three newly ranked Chunin, "HEY! They're gonna be on your asses soon! Be ready to protect Tayuya got it?"

"Understood," the three shouted.

Kidomaru scowled as he fired another bow, realizing that a few shinobi were close enough to board already. He frowned furiously before firing another bow. At the moment all he was doing was panic firing for the most part, not taking considerable time to aim. If he did, he'd probably have killed all of his targets at the very least. He had hit a few of his targets, but not nearly enough to cause a dent in their forces.

"Bee bombardment," Suzumebachi shouted. A swarm of bees carrying explosive tags shot towards one ship.

Several Kiri shinobi onboard the ship fired crossbows and threw kunai and shuriken at the insects. Several of the bugs exploded, but more and more continued forward. The shinobi soon jumped off the ship once they realized that they couldn't stop them all. A flurry of explosions went off all around the ship, consuming it in fire and letting water flow in through numerous holes.

"Brother," the bearded man shouted.

"Of course Kurobachi," the blonde, Jibachi, exclaimed. The two sent forth a wave of bees which fired a barrage of needles into the Kiri shinobi who abandoned the sinking ship.

Most of the shinobi were gunned down, while others sunk into the water to avoid the bee's stingers. A pair of shinobi shot out of the water, one Kiri Chunin stabbing Kurobachi through the front while another stabbed Jibachi in the back. The two brothers gasped in shock before they started melting into a sticky goo. The two Chunin gasped in shock as their arms and hands were covered. They cried out in terror when they noticed the paper bombs a second before they went off.

Suzumebachi smiled over at the explosion as her brothers came floating up out of the water behind her. The siblings were surrounded on all sides, but still they smirked challengingly at their opponents.

"Water style: water trumpet!" Kurotsuchi shot a powerful burst of water from her mouth which punched a hole straight through the last wooden ship. Immediately, shinobi started jumping over the rails as their ship sank into the sea. "Get em creep-o!"

"Bug swarm," Shino exclaimed. A sea of black surrounded more than half of the Kiri shinobi and closed in around them. The bugs bunched the shinobi tightly into a ball and began to eat away at them, agonizing screams of pain coming from inside. "My bugs will eat the last of their chakra until they're nothing but lifeless husks…"

"Great job," Kurotsuchi praised. Two Kiri shinobi landed around her, one in front and one behind. "Hey now boys, you gotta buy me dinner first!" A strange noise caused the cocky kunoichi to gasp and look up. A man screamed at the top of his lungs, ready to plunge his sword into Kurotsuchi. The kunoichi quickly sprung backwards as the man landed, his sword sticking through the surface of the water. "Oh crap!" It was then that Kurotsuchi noticed that the blade was surrounded with lightning. The kunoichi quickly performed a few hand signs then blasted another water trumpet which propelled her further away beyond the range of the lightning stream.

Kurotsuchi landed safely before looking up, seeing that the man who attacked her was a Kumo shinobi, "Oh no way…"

"The granddaughter of the Third Tsuchikage," the Kumo shinobi murmured. "Kill her!" The two Kiri Chunin rushed forward. Kurotsuchi prepared herself, pulling out two kunai against her sword wielding opponents.

She blocked the initial strike, ducking and spinning below it before stabbing towards the gut of the second shinobi. The Chunin blocked it with his sword. Kurotsuchi scowled, looking between the two Kiri shinobi who had her pinned. Quickly, the kunoichi sprung straight up into the air, causing the two enemy Chunin to stumble into each other, crossing blades. Kurotsuchi quickly flung her kunai down, piercing through the skulls of the two Kiri shinobi. The Chunin fell over dead as Kurotsuchi plummeted back to the water. As soon as she landed on the water, the Kumo Jonin appeared behind Kurotsuchi. The kunoichi turned her head, glaring angrily at the Jonin as he swung the sword down.

Before the strike could land, the Jonin sprung backwards as a large bee flew towards him. The Jonin swung his sword, slicing through the bee and covering himself in a sticky honey. More bees started swarming the Jonin, who instinctively started swinging around his sword, cutting through the insects and covering himself in more and more honey. The Jonin screamed in rage with a mixture of fear as he tried to move, but was unable to.

One final bee with an explosive kunai flew towards the Jonin and exploded upon contact. The sticky honey acted as an explosive adhesive which gave the explosion more fire than normal. Kurotsuchi turned around, seeing Suzumebachi smiling satisfactory.

"Is there any honor in killing a defenseless shinobi," Kurotsuchi asked venomously.

"He was a Jonin, I doubt there's anything 'defenseless' about him."

"I understand you and your siblings are willing to prove themselves worthy to Iwagakure after your falling from grace…" Kurotsuchi stood up straight, glaring at the bug kunoichi hard. "But you do things _my_ way on this mission if you want a good word in with the Tsuchikage." Suzumebachi smiled, tilting her head to the side and huffing in amusement.

"Whatever you say princess." Kurotsuchi glared at her fellow kunoichi for another moment before rushing off to aid the other shinobi.

Zaku blasted a Kiri shinobi overboard as Dosu blocked another's strike with a sword. "You got Kumo shinobi coming next!"

"What'd he say," Sakura shouted as she pinned one Kiri Genin to the ground, her knee digging into his back.

"He did _not_ just say Kumo," Dosu murmured. A few more Kiri shinobi along with several other Kumo jumped on board the ship and charged. "DAMN IT HE SAID KUMO!"

One Chunin performed a series of hand signs, lifted his hands up in the air covered in lightning and then slammed them onto the metal ground. The defending Chunin gasped in shock.

"Barrier," Sakura barked.

The three teammates all pulled out identical tags and put them on the ground, funneling their chakra into it. Three streams of charka shot up, arching over the three teammates, plus Tayuya, and formed a solid chakra barrier around them. The lightning struck the barrier, surging across the shield, as if frustrated, before dissipating.

'_Not bad pinkie,'_ Tayuya thought to herself, still playing her flute.

Kidomaru fired a bow through the chest of the Kumo Chunin who sent the wave of lightning through the ship, killing him instantly. Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku all lowered the barrier, but kept the tags on the ground.

"I'll protect Tayuya," Dosu said, "You two go on the offensive and try to push them back!"

"Kumo ninja are the top priority Zaku," Sakura added as she pulled out a kunai. "Try to at least blow them off so that we have more breathing room."

"Gotcha." Sakura and Zaku rushed forward into the squadron of Kumo and Kiri shinobi.

Dosu pulled out a series of shuriken and then hurled them forward, making sure the spinning blades would pass right by his teammates. Zaku put his hands forward, letting out his slicing sound wave to give the shuriken extra momentum forward. The shuriken took out three shinobi, but the rest were either deflected or dodged.

Zaku snapped his head at one Kumo shinobi and instantly blasted him off the edge of the ship. Two Kiri Chunin threw shuriken and knives at him in retaliation. Zaku turned and used his air holes to sent the projectiles flying back at the Kiri Chunin. One Chunin was hit with the shuriken, but the second one dodged.

Sakura crossed blades with one Chunin before delivering a devastating punch to his stomach. The man cried out before flying back, cracking his back against the steel railing. Sakura turned as a Kiri kunoichi came at her with a sword. She ducked under the strike as the enemy kunoichi circled in front of her. Sakura watched carefully, not daring to even remove her eyes from the woman. Finally, the kunoichi came at Sakura, screaming as she slashed at her. The pink haired Chunin managed to block and parry against her opponent, focusing carefully on the movement of her arms. Finally, Sakura caught the woman by the wrist, spun around and hurled her over her back and off the ship.

Kimimaro cut down the last Kiri shinobi that stood against him, Akatsuchi, Sasuke, and Hinata. He looked back over his shoulder as the two Chunin spread apart. Hinata used her gentle fist to find a weak point in the hull and the pierced it with her palm. Sasuke activated his Chidori and punched a hole through the metal. They stepped back, letting water flow into the Destroyer. Hinata smirked before moving between the two holes that she and Sasuke made and then used her rotation. The chakra barrier ate through the metal, creating a large hole that allowed even more water to flood in.

"That's good," Kimimaro said. "This ship is done for." Sasuke nodded as Hinata stopped her rotation. The four immediately started running back towards their vessel, leaving the Kiri Destroyer to sink.

As they ran back to their vessel, Kimimaro noticed that the other two teams were also heading back to their ship. He huffed in approval before looking back forward.

Kidomaru fired another bow through the head of one Kiri Genin before looking out to sea, "They did it! We're about to get reinforcements!"

The Kiri and Kumo shinobi turned their heads, seeing that the wooden ships were either sunk, sinking, or burning to the ocean's surface. A few other shinobi noticed that their Destroyer was slowly sinking as well.

"Retreat," one Kiri Jonin shouted. Without a single protest, all the Kiri and Kumo shinobi jumped off the ship and headed back towards their small fleet.

"That's right! Run ya chickens," Kidomaru shouted. The spider released his webs and landed back on the metal deck, laughing maniacally. "That's how we do it!" Tayuya stopped playing her flute, dispelling her Doki before standing up. "You three actually did pretty well. I didn't think fresh meat like you could handle it when things got thick like this."

"Glad we met with your approval," Zaku replied with a cocky smile.

Tayuya turned to Sakura, causing the younger to look at her senior in confusion, "The barrier…nice idea. Way to think quick on your feet."

"Yeah," Kidomaru agreed, "not a lot of people your age can do that."

"Thank you both," Sakura replied with a smile. "It means a lot to hear that from two students of Orochimaru-sama's."

"We're gonna need to put a lot of distance between us and them once the others get on board," Kidomaru said to Tayuya. "I'll go and get us moving." The redhead nodded, allowing her partner to run off into the ship.

"We're going to need to tell Lord Danzo about what happened," Tayuya added, turning to Sakura's team. "Which one of you three wants to write a letter and send the messenger bird back to Konoha?"

"I can do that," Sakura offered. Tayuya nodded to her fellow kunoichi. Sakura quickly ran off into the ship, disappearing behind a heavy metal door.

In the back of her mind, Sakura knew what this meant. Kumo and Kiri shinobi fighting side by side, attacking a vessel carrying Konoha and Iwa shinobi was an open act of violence, and might as well have been a written declaration of war.

It was going to be a long ride to the Land of Snow for Sakura…

* * *

Naruto shivered furiously, bundled underneath layers of blankets and jackets. "I-I thought the mission was s-s-s-supposed to take place TOMORROW!"

"If we move today we'll reach the factory by tomorrow," Jiraiya said, carrying a heavy backpack of supplies with him. Sandayu's brigade and a few members of Akatsuki had already moved out through the freezing plains almost an hour ago, parting with the other half of the group that had the princess with them. "I figure you wanted a break from watching the princess right Naruto?"

"Y-y-y-yeah, but I didn't know I'd be f-f-f-f-freezing!"

"Try not to think about it Naruto-kun," Itachi suggested with a caring smile. "Try to think about your part in the mission tomorrow."

"I-I-I-I have b-b-b-b-b-been! It still makes me cold!" Itachi smiled apologetically, laughing softly in response. "Wh-what's so special about this ch-chakra a-a-armor anyways?"

"It's a special device invented by Doto's older brother, the former daimyo Sosetsu," Sandayu replied. "It can repel any chakra based attacks: ninjutsu and genjutsu are rendered useless."

"Combined with the shinobi from the Land of Snow who specialize in mid to long range combat, getting in close for taijutsu is difficult," Jiraiya added, "if not impossible."

"Not only that, but you've seen their kunai turrets," Sandayu murmured bitterly. "That makes them even more dangerous to try and approach. Luckily, we've been able to develop many different tactics to help us combat their armor. Plus it'll help that we have some men on the inside."

"Hopefully they're reliable," Hana muttered.

"I've worked with these men back when Sosetsu was daimyo. I trust them with my life." Sandayu looked up, seeing the snow falling from the sky. "The day is almost over. We should set up camp and rest up until tomorrow."

Jiraiya and the other shinobi nodded, putting their backpacks on the ground. Naruto helped Jiraiya unpack and unroll the tent. In the back of his mind he couldn't help but wonder if the Alliance was going to send someone to the Land of Snow. Jiraiya reassured him before they set sail though that Doto and Danzo didn't see eye-to-eye, and that there was little to no chance of them working together until Doto was pushed against a wall, and by that point they'd be close enough to winning this civil war that it wouldn't make a difference.

Still, something in the back of Naruto's mind nagged at him. Something bad was going to happen. The blonde looked up at his white haired senior, "Jiraiya…" The Sannin snapped his head at Naruto, a look of shock on his face. The white haired sage wasn't quite use to hearing his name from his godson. "I have a bad feeling about…something."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. It just feel like something bad is going to happen. Not really on the mission, but about something on the horizon." Jiraiya sighed through his nose, smiling at his apprentice.

"Don't worry about it. You haven't been in war before. You're just a bit on edge, which is to be expected. Everything is going to be fine, alright Naruto?" The blonde nodded, still feeling doubt in his heart. Jiraiya smiled then ruffled Naruto's hair, causing him to smile back at his master. "Come on, let's set up the tent."

* * *

Deep in the heart of the Land of Snow, in the Kazahana Mansion, the country's daimyo, Doto Kazahana sat in his throne atop a small flight of stairs. One of his men, a top lieutenant Nadare, entered the room and bowed before his daimyo. "My lord…our scouts have encountered foreigners entering our land."

"Konoha," Doto asked.

"No. Intelligence says that they're of Akatsuki, a group of rogues from various countries around the world assembling under one leadership. They were aided by the rebellion, Sandayu of course, and the Akatsuki squad themselves are led by Jiraiya of the Legendary Three Sannin."

"Interesting. And how far out are the 'reinforcements' from Konoha?"

"They'll land on the mainland tomorrow, and be here before nightfall." Doto smiled, chuckling lowly. "And that other little…factor is being dealt with." The daimyo grinned and nodded to his lieutenant.

"Dismissed Nadare…" The Yuki shinobi bowed his head and then left Doto's chambers.

The Daimyo grinned in silence, sensing the object of his desire coming closer to him. With the Hex Crystal, he'd have enough fortune from the Kazahana Clan's secret treasure to fund his own army. And with the power of the Land of Snow's chakra armor, as well as their many other technological advancements, the Land of Snow would be a formidable force, powerful enough to even stand against Danzo's Alliance. Granted they had numbers, and diversity amongst their ranks, but even that went so far before the power the Land of Snow wielded from its technology. Their various weapons, kunai turrets, explosive field landmines, shuriken trip mines, the newly developed airships in collaboration with the Land of Sky, who would join with Doto if he could acquire the Kazahana treasure, they were all devices that were well beyond what the Five Great Nations had.

If the Land of Snow joined with the Land of Sky, their technological prowess, along with chakra armor, and the aerial advantage that they would gain, would for certain crush the Alliance underfoot. And with the Alliance out of the way, the newly formed Water/Lightning Union would be child's play compared to that.

All Doto needed to make all of this come to fruition was the Hex Crystal. With it, he could begin his own conquest of the world.

* * *

The next day had arrived rather quickly for Naruto Uzumaki. His normal body temperature had dropped back to normal, so he was no longer shivering constantly. Complaining about the cold every five minutes was another matter entirely however.

The plan to break into Doto's factory was simple. Two teams would enter topside, one through the front and one through the back. Two more teams would enter from alternate routes, one topside and the other underground. Each team was assigned to a leader: Jiraiya's team was entering underground, seeing as he was the only one who could perform earth based ninjutsu. Itachi's team was heading through the front, and Sandayu's in the back. Hana's team had the difficult task of entering from the roof, which involved them climbing a mountain of ice, and then repelling down from it.

Jiraiya's team would make the entrance, and the Itachi and Sandayu would launch their assaults. Once all the teams were inside, Hana's team would rain down from above and take out all the guards.

Naruto was with Itachi, who hid behind a wall of ice along with the rest of the team. Itachi's Sharingan was active, to see Sandayu through the light snowstorm around them. The old general had enough experience in the snow to see miles through the stuff. Sandayu was closer to the factory, and would be more likely to hear struggling once Jiraiya's squad infiltrated.

As it turned out, so could Itachi's squad.

The entire area shook violently from an explosion, which actually took out a few windows as well. "That did it," Itachi exclaimed, trying to keep a proper footing. "MOVE!" Itachi, Naruto, and a large portion of the 50th brigade charged through the snow towards the factory.

"What's that," one soldier shouted. Itachi and Naruto stopped, looking up at the top of the mountain looming over the factory. Several pillars of ice shot out from the mountain, and faint battle cries and a clashing of weapons could be heard.

Itachi's blood red eyes widened in realization, "It's a trap!" Naruto looked back at the factory, questioning if the explosion was Jiraiya's doing, or a trap that the Yuki shinobi set. His question was answered when suddenly ice started to break down the walls, spikes and pillars jutting out from the ground. "Damn it! Naruto, help me break down the ice! The rest of you cover our backs!"

The two shinobi shot forward, pouring chakra to their feet to carry them faster while the armed soldiers behind them charged behind them, screaming as they rushed into battle.

Several Yuki shinobi appeared from beneath the snow, rushing forward towards the Akatsuki and Snow rebels. Naruto and Itachi scowled, both pulling out kunai and preparing themselves for a conflict.

Itachi swung his kunai across a Yuki shinobi's, ducking under his arm and moving past him. The young Uchiha threw his leg up while spinning, kicking a kunoichi in the gut and sending her flying into two other Yuki ninja.

Naruto dove forward, slamming his shoulder and head into an enemy shinobi, knocking him to the ground. Naruto punched the man across the face and then rushed forward to catch up with Itachi.

The two Akatsuki shinobi ducked, spun, and dodged their way through the shinobi, knocking them unconscious, to the ground, or injuring them as they moved forward. The factory was in the clearing with no shinobi between them or the fortress of ice.

Itachi's eyes suddenly snapped up and he stopped. Naruto skidded to a halt, turning back to his partner right as he released a fireball in the air, dangerously close to Naruto. The blonde yelped and dove onto the snow, covering his head. Itachi's fireball melted a series of ice needles that would've hit both him and Naruto had he not noticed.

A woman flew out from behind the ice fortress on a mechanical set of wings, laughing as she flew towards the Akatsuki shinobi. Itachi's eyes narrowed before he stopped his fireball. Naruto stood up, scowling at the Yuki kunoichi as he clenched his fist.

"You're going down lady!"

"Break Jiraiya out Naruto," Itachi shouted, launching past the Jinchuriki. The blonde gasped lightly before frowning at his partner.

Itachi sprung into the air, flipping around in an attempt to kick the kunoichi. The Yuki shinobi moved to the side, avoiding the strike. Itachi landed on an ice wall, finishing a set of hand signs he started naught but a second ago, and then launched another fireball. The woman sneered as she became engulfed with fire. Itachi continued pouring more and more chakra into the fireball, his eyes narrowed as he watched carefully. The woman broke through the flames, her body surrounded by a bubble of chakra, as she stabbed towards Itachi with a kunai in hand.

Itachi quickly sprung off the wall, flipping gracefully over his opponent. The woman quickly twisted her body around, placing a small object on Itachi's cloak. The Uchiha gasped, looking at a tiny blue ball on a string. As soon as the kunoichi kicked Itachi away, the ball erupted in a tower of ice, entrapping Itachi in the center. The kunoichi spun around and flew around the pillar, grinning in satisfaction at the opponent she trapped. Suddenly, Itachi was engulfed in a cloud of smoke and vanished.

'_Shadow clone!'_ The kunoichi looked back to the wall where she last encountered her opponent, seeing Itachi exploding out of the ice. _'How did he!'_ The kunoichi scoffed before forming a hand seal. "Ice style: swallow snow storm!"

Itachi performed the same hand sign, his eyes fixated on the kunoichi in front of him, "Ice style: swallow snow storm!"

The kunoichi snarled in rage as Itachi copied her movements to throw the miniature ice needles. The two jutsu clashed with one another, ice shattering against ice, throwing particles and tiny shards everywhere. Itachi began to fall towards the ground, spinning backwards as the kunoichi threw a kunai with one of her ice bombs attached. The young Uchiha's eyes narrowed before the kunai hit the ground in front of him and erupted in a pillar of ice.

The kunoichi flew overhead like a vulture and frowned whenever Itachi slid to the side unharmed. The Uchiha looked up at his airborne opponent before standing up straight. The young kunoichi snarled fiercely at the growingly irritating Akatsuki adversary.

"You're quite the capable kunoichi," Itachi stated. "It's obvious that you're more than one of Doto's grunts."

"I'm one of Lord Doto's three top lieutenants. You can call me Fubuki Kakuyoku." Itachi narrowed his eyes. He had heard the name before in the mission reports before being shipped out.

'_Extremely ruthless, and kills any and all opponents without a shred of remorse. She's fast and utilizes her ice style to trap her opponents, capturing them alive so they can interrogate them later. I'll have to keep my guard up with her.'_

Naruto watched Itachi's fight, turning back to the ice fortress during his partner's conversation with Fubuki. Immediately, the blonde rushed towards the factory, but just like that it was blown to shards. Naruto yelped in fright, falling onto his rear as ice rained down around him. A massive toad sprung out of a hole in the ground and landed in front of Naruto, causing him to scream in fear.

"DAMN IT JIRAIYA," the summon, Gamabunta roared, "YOU SUMMON ME TO THIS COLD ASS PLACE?"

"I just needed your help for that Bunta, you're heading back!" The Sannin dispelled the toad, falling to the ground through a cloud of smoke. Jiraiya looked back, putting his hands on his hips as he lowered his head to Naruto. "What the hell took you so long?"

"I was working on it alright!" Out of the remains of the factory came Jiraiya's squad, who rushed to aid their comrades fighting the Yuki shinobi. "I'll help them out! Back up Itachi if he needs it and—what the hell?" Naruto narrowed his eyes on his godfather, noticing the older man was looking up. The blonde turned his head, staring in the same direction to see a figure leap off the ice mountain looming high above their heads.

Itachi and Fubuki also looked up, seeing a pair of shadows covering their heads. The former focused his Sharingan, his mouth falling slightly ajar when he realized it was Hana.

The headstrong Inuzuka leapt off the ledge of the ice cliff with a metal arm wrapped around her abdomen. She screamed in fury as she spun around, wrapping the cable around her body and bringing in its owner, another of Doto's top lieutenants, Mizore Fuyukuma, closer to her. The large man howled in rage, pulling his fist back as he got closer. With all his might, he struck Hana across the face, sending her in the opposite direction with great force, unraveling the metal cable from around her body. Hana snapped her head back at Mizore, blood trailing down the corner of her mouth, and eyes slit in fury as her clan's feral instincts took over.

With Mizore's hand still grabbing onto Hana, the young Inuzuka grabbed the metal cable attached to it, and pulled hard with all her might. Mizore cried out in shock as he was forcefully yanked towards his opponent. Hana snarled, breathing like a rabid beast as she kept grabbing the cable, pulled, grabbed the cable, and continued. Mizore clenched his jaw, pulling his fist back again. Hana pulled the lieutenant forward once more, giving him enough momentum to get close. Mizore threw his fist forward with all his might, funneling some chakra into it too. Hana pulled her head to the side, keeping her beast-like eyes fixated on her opponent while his massive arm grazed the side of her face. Mizore's eyes widened as Hana then pulled her fist back. Before the Yuki lieutenant could block, Hana's fist smashed against his face with tremendous force.

Hana threw her other fist into other side of Mizore's face, then her previous fist, and then the second, effectively pounding mercilessly on the Yuki shinobi's face as they both fell. Each blow only gave extra momentum and force as they plummeted to the ground, reaching breakneck speeds from falling alone. The impact alone would be more than enough to kill anyone. Hana's blows became stronger, faster, and more ferocious, eventually drawing blood. She delivered a powerful fist across Mizore's face, spinning around to kick him in the stomach, causing the man to cough out a mouthful of blood. Hana twisted the foot against his stomach before kicking Mizore against the chin. The feral Inuzuka lightly lifted off Mizore's stomach, spun around and screamed in outright fury as she brought her arm back. With all her might, mixed with a little chakra, brought down a bone shattered punch to Mizore's stomach just before they came crashing into the ground.

Snow and ice flew out from beneath the impact, causing Itachi, Fubuki, Jiraiya, and Naruto to shield their faces from the shards and cold powder. The snow fell back to the ground, revealing Hana hunched over her fallen enemy's body. Mizore groaned weakly, revealing that he somehow survived. His chakra armor started sparking. Hana guessed that the chakra armor took the brunt of the impact. The headstrong Inuzuka snapped her head up, glaring up at the airborne Fubuki with slit, animalistic eyes.

The Yuki kunoichi flinched in distaste upon seeing the young woman's glare, before taking note that the enemy forces were overtaking hers. Fubuki scoffed before turning her head, nodding towards the vast number of reinforcements on the horizon.

"A double-cross," Hana murmured, her eyes slowly turning back to their rounded form. "Won't say I didn't see this one coming."

"We can't fight that many enemies," Naruto stated loudly.

"Retreat," Jiraiya shouted. The Akatsuki and Snow rebels turned and started to flee from the battle.

"My apologies," Sandayu said with a sorry face. "I thought for certain that my inside sources would-,"

"Less talking, more running," Jiraiya ordered.

Fubuki landed on the snow, crossing her arms while narrowing her eyes on the feeling enemies. From the crater, Mizore sat up, groaning as he cracked his neck from one side to the next.

"Think you can pursue them big guy," Fubuki questioned.

"I just need a few minutes to recover. I'll be hot on their trail."

"Just don't let it run too cold, otherwise you'll never find them." Fubuki smirked cockily before turning around and flying off into the distance. Several other Yuki forces revealed to have the same glider and followed after Fubuki.

Mizore huffed, clenching his right fist so hard his knuckles popped. The reinforcements rode up on snowmobiles, surrounding their leader. "I'll give them a little head start, then we'll go in and finish them off. Understood?"

"Yes sir," the Yuki Pursuit Squad replied in unison.

* * *

Konan sat at the front of the ship, legs crossed and in a deep meditative trance. According to the ship's captain, they were going to arrive in the Land of Snow much sooner than expected, thanks to the winds being with them. The captain said that it would only be a few more minutes, closer to an hour perhaps. A shadow passed over her, followed shortly by the sound of a dull thud behind her.

"Well, the Land of Snow is in sight," Deidara informed. "The captain was right: the winds were with us today. Really cold freaking winds I might add…

"Good, thank you Deidara." The artist nodded, but lingered for a bit. Konan turned her head over her shoulder, giving a curious stare. "Is something bothering you?"

"Not really me, but some of the other guys. They're kinda freaked out by one of the people assigned to this mission." Konan stood up, picking up her Akatsuki cloak off a nearby barrel and throwing it over her shoulders.

"Who would that be?"

"I dunno his name," Deidara replied as Konan fastened the belt around her cloak. "The tall kid with silver hair and those weird…sparkly like eyes."

"Sparkly like eyes…?" Deidara rolled his visible eye, which slightly annoyed Konan.

"The kid with silver hair I thought would be enough." Deidara turned around and pointed to the opposite end of the ship. Konan tilted her head to the side, seeing a young man with two tonfa-like blades, wearing a black tank top and white pants. "That kid is freaking some of the other guys out for some reason or other. Don't ask me why: I'm just the messenger."

"I think his name is Kiriya if I'm not mistaken," Konan murmured. She turned to Deidara, who looked back at her, "I didn't assign him to the mission. Yahiko thought he'd be a good addition to the team."

"What's he specialize in?"

"Assassinations," Konan replied, looking back out at the training youth. "He's Yahiko's go-to-boy when he needs something done. I've never really worked with him, but I've definitely heard things about him around base, and a lot of praise from Yahiko." Deidara rested his elbow on the railing, huffing with a bored expression as he looked towards the rear of the ship.

Konan put her hands on her hips, her expression becoming a bit annoyed as she remembered her boyfriend. She was still a bit upset with the way he acted before she left on her recent mission. He of all people should know how important it is to make sure that the Land of Snow remains neutral in this conflict.

Turning to Deidara, who gave his superior a perplexed look, Konan sighed, "You're dismissed Deidara."

"If you insist Lady Konan." The artist stared walking away, murmuring quietly to himself, "Not like there's anything to do on this stupid ship anyway."

Konan rolled her eyes as Deidara went down the stairs. She looked back up at Kiriya training across the ship. She wondered, in the back of her mind, if he was sent by Yahiko to keep an eye on her. It wouldn't surprise her if that were the case. Whether or not that was the case, she had to focus on the mission at hand, then she could worry about tearing Yahiko a new one.

* * *

Sakura clutched her cloak and hood over her body tightly, not quite use to the freezing temperatures of the Land of Snow. The Serpent Five, and even Kurotsuchi's group didn't seem too bothered by it. Thankfully she didn't have to carry the ship's supplies, unlike Shikamaru, Lee, and Choji, the three of whom somehow slept through the attack on the seas. It was a form of punishment for them, issued by Kimimaro. It also didn't help that they were the only Genin in the group either.

The pink haired kunoichi turned to her teammates to see how they were doing. Zaku was shivering worse than Sakura was, rubbings his arms while a trail of snot dangled from his nose. Dosu had his hands tucked under his arms, mumbling angrily behind his mask about the cold. He seemed to be taking the cold better than his teammates.

Sakura looked forward just as Tayuya looked back over her shoulder, "If you cover your chest it'll warm you up more than rubbing your arms." Immediately, Zaku's hands and arms were used to cover his chest. Sakura did the same, as did Dosu.

"Thank you," Sakura replied.

"Don't mention it." Tayuya turned her head back around. Her apparent kindness caused the three newly promoted Chunin to look at one another for a moment.

"How far is the Kazahana Palace," Sakon asked, his arms crossed over his chest while he walked.

"Miles away," Kimimaro answered tonelessly. "Apparently we're supposed to be met halfway by some of Doto's soldiers, and they can transport us the rest of the way there."

"Good, I can't handle much more of this cold," Jirobo stated.

"You've got enough blubber there to support a whole platoon's body heat fatass," Tayuya replied snappishly.

"Let's keep from killing each other until we're safe, alright," Kurotsuchi suggested. The redhead huffed, rolling her eyes at Jirobo. Sakura was glad to have Kurotsuchi along with them. Just another ninja to help keep the peace between everyone else.

"There's something up ahead!" Kimimaro, Sakon, Kidomaru, and Kurotsuchi narrowed their eyes up ahead, while everyone else looked back at Hinata in panic. "There's a large group of people running from something! And some of them…their uniforms…"

"What about their uniforms," Kimimaro asked. Sakura knew what Hinata was going to say. Judging from Kimimaro's tone, he knew too, but just needed confirmation. The mission report said that there was a high probability that they would run into this group.

"Black coats with red clouds…"

"Akatsuki," Kimimaro seethed. "ATTACK!"

* * *

Naruto ran right behind Jiraiya, with the rest of Sandayu's brigade and the other few Akatsuki shinobi behind him. While they fled from the ambush, Sandayu explained about the Yuki Pursuit Squad, and how they had vehicles that could travel through snow and ice with ease, and were easily faster than a normal human on foot. It would only be a matter of time before Mizore recovered and raced after them with his squad.

The gasp from Hana was audible from the front of the group, causing Naruto and Jiraiya to look back over their shoulders, "Ambush! Close too!"

All heads snapped to the left, just as a figure almost as pale as the snow itself sprung into the air, spun around and fired a few tiny projectiles that tore through two rebel soldiers.

"ATTACK," Jiraiya roared.

Naruto prepared to lunge into battle, but a young boy with Sharingan active and blue hair appeared in front of him. The blonde gasped in shock as Sasuke Uchiha thrusted his Chidori forward. Quickly, Naruto jerked to the side, using his forearm to push the lightning attack to the side. The two glared at each other, both of their eyes burning with fury.

Naruto wrapped both of his hands around Sasuke's left arm and then threw the boy over his back, sending him flying. The young Uchiha flipped around and landed crouched in the snow. Naruto couldn't help but smirk cockily while Sasuke simply glared.

Hana ducked under the massive arm of Jirobo, then side stepped from another destructive blow. She quickly hopped up, throwing her leg forward and kicking the large Chunin across the chin. Jirobo grunted, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth before he glared back at Hana. The Inuzuka landed on her hands and flipped gracefully back onto her feet, scowling fiercely at her opponent. She quickly turned to the side, noticing two other kunoichi from Iwagakure charging at her.

Tayuya sprung backwards, spinning around in the air before bringing her flute to her lips. She scowled before she was forced to dodge another pair of kunai, courtesy of Itachi. He knew all to well what her abilities entailed, and wasn't going to give her the chance to use them. Itachi's eyes snapped to the side, noticing a swarm of bees flying towards him on either side. He quickly sprung back, and launched a fireball as the bees turned to follow after him. The fire set the insects ablaze, and headed for Tayuya as well to keep her on guard. The redhead cursed loudly before launching herself to the side to avoid the blazing ball of fire. As she glared at Itachi, Jibachi and Kurobachi stood on their side of Tayuya, all focused on their target.

Dosu dodged a sword from one of the rebel soldiers before elbowing him in the side of the face. He looked around carefully, noticing Sasuke's particular opponent. With widened eyes, Dosu quickly looked around to find either of his teammates. Zaku was the first to enter his sight, and he immediately bolted for him.

The black haired Chunin blasted a pair of soldiers back before scowling as more rushed towards him. "ZAKU!" Dosu slid across the snow, stopping right in front of his teammate, "Go help Sasuke!"

Zaku's immediate reaction was a perplexed one, "Did you hit your head or something?" The masked, hunched over Chunin snapped his arm in the direction of Sasuke's fight. Zaku's eyes widened on his blonde opponent during the Chunin exams. "OH IT!" Zaku shot across the battlefield to aid Sasuke. Dosu now concerned himself with finding Sakura before she found Naruto.

Blocking Sasuke's strike with his forearm, Naruto delivered a powerful fist across his face, knocking the Uchiha to the ground. He turned around, just as a powerful force of wind threw him to the ground and sent him rolling across the snow. Naruto quickly bounced up to his feet and gasped lightly at the sight of Zaku.

"Hey there buddy," Zaku greeted smugly, "Miss me?" Naruto's eyes were wide, a look of dread washed over his face. Zaku narrowed his eyes, knowing what was going through his opponent's mind. He opened his mouth to answer Naruto's question, but stopped himself and gasped in shock.

Naruto spun around, seeing a silhouetted figure falling down towards him. The shine of the sunlight off a kunai caused the blonde to raise his own knife in defense. The silhouette's knife clashed against Naruto's, tiny sparks flying out as the metals grinded against each other. Naruto's eyes widened in horror once he saw who it was. Sakura's emerald green eyes were filled with anger, fury, and hurt as they bored through Naruto's.

"Sa-," The blonde was cut off when Sakura's fist struck Naruto across the face with surprising force. The Jinchuriki rolled back over his own head, and then onto his side before he came to a stop. He was stunned briefly by the power of Sakura's punch, which had sent a surge through his body. _'She used chakra like Granny Tsunade. But it's a lot weaker than Granny's…'_

Naruto moved his eyes to the side just as Sakura rolled him onto his back. She lifted him up by the collar of his shirt and held her kunai to his throat. Naruto looked at the blade in shock and then up to Sakura. She was still, very visibly, angry at him. Naruto swallowed the nervous lump in his throat, moving his eyes back to the knife.

"Uh…hey Sakura-chan…"

Jiraiya jumped back as Kimimaro shot a series of bone-like bullets at him. The white haired Sannin looked to the side, seeing Naruto in danger. He scowled and moved to assist him, but was cut of by Sakon and Kidomaru.

"You're not going anywhere old timer," Sakon stated. "Let's just see what happens between those two wayward lovers shall we?"

Jiraiya smirked, taking a step back, "I don't think you realize who you're messing with little boy. I guess Orochimaru told you everything _he_ knew about my abilities, but let me show you the power that not even your master could prepare you for!"

"Bring it," Kidomaru challenged cockily.

Sakura scowled fiercely, making sure Naruto could feel the sharpness of her knife. Zaku took one step towards them, watching Sakura cautiously. "Come on Sakura, killing him won't help us."

"I think it'll do me a world of good," Sakura seethed angrily.

"This isn't the time for your personal crap," Sasuke snapped. "Lord Danzo would want the village's Jinchuriki alive. If you kill him…then there's going to be hell to pay for you."

"Shut up," Sakura venomously muttered. Zaku gasped in shock, turning to Sasuke who narrowed his eyes dangerously. Zaku never thought that Sakura would ever tell her childhood crush to shut it, let alone risk angering him. "You've got a lot to answer for Naruto Uzumaki."

"Sakura, I already told you that I'm sorry for lying to you! That was months ago, and I saved your life!"

"Really smart yelling at the scorned woman with a knife to your throat," Zaku sarcastically pointed out.

"Sakura, please, this is stupid!"

"You think breaking my heart was stupid?"

"No! I didn't say that was stupid! I still like you, I really do Sakura-chan, and I don't want to fight you!"

Sakura scowled, ready to fire a reply back before she snapped her head up. The kunoichi sprung backwards, averting a spear stabbed at her with her kunai. Naruto rolled back, standing next to Sandayu, who held the spear. The blonde glared at the older man, who returned a glance to him.

"Are you alright Naruto?"

"I'm fine, but leave Sakura-chan to me, got it Sandayu?" The older man stared at the blonde for a moment. Naruto was grateful that Sandayu helped him, but if he was going to hurt Sakura, then Naruto didn't want the old general's help in this fight.

"As you wish Naruto. I'll leave the young lady to you, but I hope you don't mind if I help you against the others."

"Be my guest, just don't let your guard down," the blonde replied. Sandayu nodded then readied his spear.

Sasuke huffed dismissively before rushing forward. Sakura growled angrily at him before rushing off to get to Naruto fist. Zaku rolled his eyes and followed after his fellow, hard-headed, teammates.

Sandayu strode forward, swinging his spear across to Sasuke. The young Chunin stopped in his tracks and jerked his head back, watching as the tip of the spear passed by his face.

Sakura shot right past the two and headed for Naruto. The blonde's face hardened and determined. His feelings for Sakura were absolute, but that didn't mean he was going to roll over and let her take him to prisoner.

Sakura swung her kunai forward. Naruto swiftly raised his in defense, the two knives grinding against each other. The pink haired kunoichi quickly spun around and slashed at her opponent again. Naruto again blocked the kunai and swung back in retaliation. The two moved back and forth in a flurry of blinding motions, sparks flying out as their blades crossed against each other's.

Naruto stepped back, letting Sakura's kunai pass by his nose. Before he could react, a gust of wind threw him violently to the side. Sakura looked to her right, seeing Zaku with his palms aimed at the blonde Jinchuriki. She scowled angrily, frustrated that her fight was being intruded on. Her fight with Naruto had nothing to do with him or Dosu.

Naruto rolled back across the snow, flipping onto all fours. As a shadow covered his whole body, Naruto's eyes widened as he snapped his head around. Dosu pulled his sleeve back, revealing his melody arm before he swung is arm forward. Naruto sprung forward as Dosu's fingertip dug through the white powder.

Zaku rushed forward towards Naruto to catch him off guard. Sakura growled in frustration before following her teammate. Naruto saw the other two Konoha Chunin rushing at him. Before he hit the ground, Naruto created a clone beneath him. Using the clone as a stepping stone, Naruto surged some chakra into his hands and feet and rocketed off his copy. Zaku started coming to an immediate halt, but Naruto slammed into him with all his force, shoving him to the ground. Naruto rolled over Zaku, who groaned softly in pain.

The blonde snapped his head up as Sakura brought her kunai down. Naruto grabbed Sakura by her wrist and halfway down her forearm, holding her firmly in place. The two glared at each other, Sakura with unrelenting fury and Naruto with resolved determination. The blonde looked over towards Sandayu out of concern. To the old man's credit, he was holding his own.

Sandayu lashed the spear out, causing Sasuke to bend backwards as the weapon narrowly passed by his face. The general then stuck the tip into the ground and spun around, slamming his feet into the young shinobi's chest. Sasuke scowled and rolled backwards before straightening himself. Sandayu hurled the spear a second before Sasuke stopped rolling. The young Uchiha sprung back as the spear hit between his legs in the snow. Sasuke glared up at the old man who unsheathed a pair of short swords and rushed forward.

Naruto looked back at Sakura and threw her arm to the side, causing her to fall face-first into the snow. The blonde quickly rushed to help Sandayu finish off Sasuke just as a kunai landed in front of him. Naruto gasped in confusion before a tiny blue orb at the end of the kunai erupted into a massive pillar of ice.

The rebels, Sandayu, Jiraiya, Itachi, and Hana all turned their heads to the side, seeing a large battalion of snowmobiles being led by Mizore on a snowboard racing in their direction. Naruto slid back from the pillar of ice, scowling fiercely at the Yuki reinforcements. The blonde turned his head just as Sakura slid around the other side of the pillar and rushed him.

"We have to retreat," Itachi shouted as he defended himself from the Alliance shinobi.

"They're faster than us," Hana sniped back, punching Jirobo across the face with all her might before springing off the large man's stomach.

"Hana's right," Jiraiya agreed, "we have to make a stand here and now! Take out everyone you can!"

The Yuki Pursuit Squad hurled ice bomb kunai from a distance as they closed in, bombarding the battlefield. Both forces managed to dodge and battle between the pillars, despite the bombardment.

Naruto ducked as Sakura threw her fist at his head, breaking one pillar of ice like it were glass. The blonde spun under the kunoichi's arm and snapped his head as Dosu threw his leg at him. Naruto sprung to the side, avoiding Dosu's strike. The masked Chunin bounced off the pillar and ran behind Sakura, who was already rushing after Naruto. The blonde kept his eyes focused on the two opponents in front of him, unaware that Zaku was hiding behind a nearby pillar. The black haired Chunin spun out of cover and violently blasted Naruto across the battlefield and into a pillar of ice, causing the freezing element to crack under the impact. The three teammates rejoined, the two boys standing on either side of Sakura who approached Naruto.

Sakura lifted Naruto up by the collar of his hooded Akatsuki jacket and then shoved him violently against the ice pillar. She glared fiercely into his eyes while Naruto simply stared back with equal intensity.

"You certainly got a lot stronger Sakura-chan…" The kunoichi made no reply, simply glaring at the rogue in front of her. The two stood in silence, staring at each other with equal passion.

Standing where she was, Sakura still wasn't sure what to feel about Naruto. She was still upset, enraged even, that Naruto had lied to her and manipulated her like he did. But there was something in her heart, repressed feelings that she buried deep inside. They were muffled whispers at best, trying to break free. Sakura had a duty though, to her village, not to her heart.

"Naruto!" The three Chunin plus the rogue looked back, seeing Sandayu striking Dosu and Zaku across the face with a wooden pole. The general rushed forward to aid the blonde Jinchuriki. Sakura scowled, pulling out a kunai in defense.

Sandayu rushed forward, his eyes focused and deadest on the young woman. Halfway between the two, one of the ice pillars was shattered by Sasuke's Chidori. Sandayu, Sakura, and Naruto all gasped as the young Uchiha landed in the snow and rushed towards the old general. Sandayu swung the pole at Sasuke's face, but the Konoha Chunin ducked under the weapon and shot his hand forward. Sandayu gasped in shock as he watched Sasuke's jutsu coming towards him.

"SANDAYU!" Sasuke slid past Sandayu, standing between Zaku and Dosu as he came to a stop. The old rebel general fell to his knees and then collapsed face-first into the snow. Naruto's eyes were wide with horror, looking at the fallen general who died trying to save him.

His grief was washed away by a tidal wave of pure, uncontrollable fury.

Naruto screamed out at the top of his lungs, an immense force exploding out from around him. Sakura was instantly thrown back, releasing Naruto as she landed between Sasuke and Dosu in the snow. Naruto continued to scream, destroying all nearby ice pillars with his chakra which exploded around him.

The heads of the other combatants whipped around in shock at the source of the immense power and destruction of ice. Jiraiya, Itachi, and Hana all gasped, knowing that Naruto was losing control.

Red chakra started bubbling out from around Naruto before he slowly descended to the ground. The blonde lowered his head, focusing on the three Konoha Chunin in front of him. Sasuke trembled slightly, but kept his composure. He never expected to fight a rampant Jinchuriki. Dosu narrowed his eyes, letting his arms dangle at his sides as he readied himself for Naruto to attack. Zaku was visibly nervous, but he would fight if he had to, even if he had to take on the Kyuubi itself.

Sakura's eyes were wide with rage, and bloodshot with fury. The site at the unholy chakra, that _demon's_ chakra caused something within her to snap. Slowly, almost lifelessly, Sakura stood up. Her head and arms hung limply for a moment before she snapped her eyes up at Naruto, matching the demonic fury in his eyes.

Naruto let out a loud, head splitting roar as the Kyuubi's chakra exploded around him, shooting up in a pillar of red chakra. The chakra soon gathered around him in a shroud, turning his hands and feet into claws of chakra, with two long, fox-like ears and a single tail of chakra.

The transformation caused Sakura's rage to build, veins bulging out of her hands and forehead. Despite herself, Sakura threw her head back and screamed out with all her might, fury, and anguish. The demon that killed her father was before her, taking control of Naruto. Her feelings now were absolute: kill the demon that took her father.

The pink haired kunoichi shot forward with incredible speed, throwing up snow behind on her teammates. The Kyuubi chakra settled down a bit, letting Naruto look forward. A split second after Naruto lowered his head, Sakura slammed her fist across his face, pouring as much chakra as she could into the blow. With her chakra exploding out of her fist, combined with the Kyuubi's chakra, Sakura's glove was torn to shreds.

Naruto sailed through the air before throwing his arms out. The chakra extended out and grabbed two pillars of ice. Though the pillars broke under the pressure, they helped bring Naruto to a stop. Sakura rushed forward again, snow flying out from behind her. Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and then threw them outward, sending an immense shockwave forward. The snow flew up in front of the shockwave, right towards Sakura.

The kunoichi sprung into the air, high above the tidal wave of snow carried by the shockwave. Eyes focused on Naruto, she spun around and hurled a kunai with a chain of explosive tags attached to it. The blonde threw his arm up, the charka extending to cause the kunai to hit his hand and explode before it did him any harm.

Sakura landed in the snow, eyes still boring into the demonic Naruto. The rampaging blonde lowered his head to the pink haired kunoichi, matching her anger and hatred.

A group of Yuki shinobi surrounded Naruto very quickly, causing the blonde to snarl in shock. With an enormous cry of rage, Naruto lashed his arms out, slashing and smashing through the Yuki shinobi with ease.

Sakura shot forward in a mindless rage. Naruto turned his head as his chakra arm slowed after cutting through one last Yuki shinobi. The pink haired shinobi ducked under one appendage of charka that shot out at her, sliding through the snow on her back. She threw her leg into the back of Naruto's knee, causing him to collapse. Another appendage of chakra shot out at her, causing Sakura to shoot up to her feet. She spun around, surging chakra through her leg before slamming it into the back of Naruto's head. The Jinchuriki flew forward, landing on his face and rolling forward before turning back towards his opponent.

Naruto shot forward with a feral cry, vanishing in a flash while kicking up snow. Zaku and Dosu immediately rushed to aid Sakura in whatever way they could. Green eyes focused on the snow flying up under Naruto's feet. The blonde appeared in a solid form instead of an invisible blur, right in front of Sakura. His fist was pulled back and shot forward. Sakura gasped, quickly raising her arms in front of her face to shield herself. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the crushing blow that never came.

Sakura peeked through one eyelid, staring at Naruto as his demon's chakra started to die down. A look of remorse plastered itself on Naruto's face before he lowered his arms and head. Sakura couldn't help herself as a soft gasp escaped her lips. She was no longer consumed by the blinding fury that consumed her when she saw the Kyuubi's chakra. Her rage and anger went away at the same time Naruto repressed the demon inside of himself. What's more, Sakura was surprised that Naruto managed to settle the demon's chakra on his own, just because he was about to hurt her. Guilt washed over her face before she raised up a kunai to Naruto's throat.

"I have to take you in Naruto…"

"I know Sakura-chan…" Naruto looked up at Sakura, his blue eyes meeting her green orbs. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by a frightened scream. Sakura's eyes widened as she saw Naruto getting pulled back by one distinctive Yuki shinobi with a metal arm and purple hair.

Naruto clawed at the snow, trying to grab onto something to stop himself from being dragged towards Mizore. The Yuki commander grinned as his arm started pulling the blonde closer and closer. Suddenly, an explosion destroyed the cable attaching his hand to his arm, breaking Naruto free from his grasp. Mizore cried out in shock, stumbling backwards before looking around to where the explosion could have come from. Finally, he looked up, seeing a group of figures falling from the sky.

"Rotation!" The figure closest to Mizore spun around, unleashing a powerful barrier of spinning chakra. The commander groaned in pain as his chakra armor raised its force field up, protecting him from the barrier, but still throwing him back with great strength.

Naruto pried the metal claw off his chest and looked up just as the chakra barrier dissipated, revealing a long stream of flowing brown hair on top of a black cloak with red clouds. "NEJI!" The brunette looked back at his blonde companion and smiled.

"Naruto my man!" The blonde turned his head to see Deidara, dressed in a long, hooded cloak descend on top of a giant clay bird. "I've gotta say, you put off a hell of a flare my man!"

"A what now?"

"Your chakra," Neji said, pointing at the Jinchuriki. Naruto's eyes widened at the realization before laughing nervously, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. The Jinchuriki looked back at his fellow blonde, noticing a small figure sitting on the bird behind him.

"Who's that?"

Deidara turned around, looking at the purple haired youngster before turning back to Naruto, "This is Ranmaru. He's got a cool little dojutsu." One more clay bird descended to the ground, carrying Hanabi Hyuga, and Haku. "We also brought reinforcements!"

"I'll say," Naruto exclaimed loudly.

Hinata turned her head, seeing the Akatsuki cavalry. She quickly noted the inclusion of Neji, her cousin, and her baby sister Hanabi. Instinctively, she turned and rushed towards her rogue relatives.

Neji's eyes quickly picked up on the Hyuga heiress, causing him to spin around and block her initial strike. The two dojutsus met each other, both filled with hatred. Neji pushed Hinata back and used his rotation, causing her to jump back. The heiress turned her head to the side, knocking away a strike from her younger sister before distancing herself further.

"So, the treacherous rats in our family are working together are they?" Hanabi and Neji both narrowed their eyes furiously at the arrogant heiress.

Deidara let out a low whistle before his clay bird flapped its wings, "Guess I need to give these guys a hell of an art show!" The artist flew higher into the air. His eye caught something, noticing Kurotsuchi. The kunoichi was also looking in his direction, scowling furiously. Deidara scoffed before reaching into his clay pouches, "Let's start off with some base work!"

The artist threw his arms out to the side, unleashing a shower of clay spiders that rained down on the battlefield. Upon contact with the enemy, the spiders exploded. Many Yuki shinobi had their chakra armor overloaded, and were killed by a series of chain-linked explosions. The Alliance shinobi managed to dodge the spiders, even if narrowly.

"Next, let's layer up on the groundwork!" Deidara spun around, throwing what turned into smaller clay birds in a spiral direction.

Though fewer in numbers than the spiders, the birds were much faster and had a more destructive blast radius. The Yuki shinobi whose chakra armor held out against the spiders soon met their end by the birds. The explosives also took out groups of Yuki shinobi whose chakra armor was overloaded.

Mizore scowled, swatting at the bombs before shouting, "Retreat!"

Kimimaro fired a few of his bone bullets through one bird, causing it to explode prematurely. He scoffed before watching the Yuki shinobi retreat. "Everyone: fall back!" The Alliance forces followed the Yuki shinobi.

Sakura looked back to Naruto, who was staring at her as well. The two exchanged a long glance before Sakura turned and ran. Kurotsuchi stopped and turned around, noticing her friend was behind the rest of the group. She looked up at Deidara who had a cocky smirk on his face. She scowled before Sakura patted her shoulder, causing the two kunoichi to follow the retreating forces.

"Is that it," Deidara asked, his bird slowly falling towards the ground. "I was hoping for some more action to test my art against!"

"There's gonna be plenty more chances for that Deidara-san," Jiraiya replied, letting out a soft sigh of relief afterwards.

"General Sandayu!" The Akatsuki turned their heads, seeing a group of rebel soldiers trying to patch up their general. His chest was bleeding intensely, pouring the red substance all over the pure, white ground.

"I can help," Ranmaru said. Jiraiya nodded then escorted the young boy through the group of rebels.

The Sannin pulled the two medics off and allowed Ranmaru to step in. The boy knelt down and placed his hands over the wound. His eyes began to glow a bright red as his hands were covered in a light purple chakra. The chakra covered the wound, closing it slowly and causing Sandayu's eyes to flicker with life.

The soldiers cheered in joy while Ranmaru smiled. A firm pressure on his shoulder caused Ranmaru to blinked in surprise. He looked up, seeing Jiraiya smiling warmly down at him. The boy couldn't help but smile at him, pride swelling up inside him.

Ranmaru stood up, allowing Sandayu to sit up and look around in shock, "I…I'm not dead…?" The old general looked to Ranmaru to offered him an innocent smile, "You…you saved me?" Sandayu moved onto his knees and bowed on his hands with his head down. Ranmaru gasped in shock at the sudden gesture. "I am forever in your debt young man."

Ranmaru couldn't help but let out a soft laugh, causing Sandayu to look up in confusion. "Don't worry about it mister. You owe me nothing." A wide smile of appreciation came over Sandayu's face before he nodded.

Hanabi smiled, holding her hands behind her back as she witnessed Ranmaru healing the unfamiliar old man. Neji and Haku walked up, noticeable from the crunching of snow underfoot. The two stood next to each other, looking out at Ranmaru before looking at Hanabi.

"Looks like your cousin is rather fond of Ranmaru eh Neji-kun," Haku questioned. Hanabi turned her head in bewilderment while Neji simply smirked.

"Seems that way." Hanabi's eyes widened as her face became flushed with embarrassment.

"N-NO! I don't like him like that at all!" Haku and Neji couldn't help but grin as they exchanged glances. Hanabi fumed in frustration, glaring at the two older shinobi angrily.

Jiraiya helped Sandayu to his feet and allowed the latter to brush the snow off himself. "Sandayu, can you move?"

"Yes, we'll continue to the rendezvous point," the rebel general answered. "I won't hold us back Master Jiraiya." The Sannin smiled in admiration and nodded. With a wave of his rather large hand, Jiraiya, Sandayu, and the rebel faction moved forward.

Deidara walked alongside Naruto, a sour look on the artist's face, "I didn't even get a chance to show you my latest masterpiece my man."

"Don't worry about it. I get the feeling we're going to be here for awhile now Deidara my man…" Naruto looked back at the battle ravaged field of snow as he walked. Deep down, Naruto knew for certain that he and the rest of Akatsuki was going to be in the Land of Snow for awhile yet.

Turning his head forward, recent images of Sakura flashed through his mind. Her anger, determination, and hurt all aimed at Naruto. He wondered if she could even consider liking him, let alone harboring feelings for him. Naruto wondered if he still even liked her, or if he was just fooling himself at this point. He rubbed the back of his neck, frowning in his own sadness.

"Hey Deidara…" The artist turned to his fellow blonde with a curious look. "Konan-chan is with you right?" Deidara nodded with a puzzled expression on his face. Naruto returned the nod before turning away from the artist. The Jinchuriki sighed through his nose. He needed to talk to his big sister when they rejoined with the reinforcements.


	30. As Cold as the Snow

Naruto moved through the camp, watching as the Snow Rebels started patching each other up from the previous battle. While they weren't medical ninjas, the Rebels' field medics' abilities were nothing to turn your nose at. With Shizune's guidance and aid, the wounded soldiers were healed quickly and effectively.

The blonde could still hardly believe what happened less than a few hours ago. They fell into a trap and then an ambush by the Alliance and Yuki forces. Not only that, but he encountered Sakura Haruno. His infatuation with the young pink haired girl had gotten back to the point where he couldn't get her out of his mind, just as it was back during the Chunin Exams. Back then, Kiba and Neji taunted him relentlessly about that, and Yahiko just didn't give a damn. Immediately after the Chunin Exams though, when his heart was racked with pain and guilt, Konan was there to help him get Sakura off the mind. He needed his big sister now more than ever.

Naruto entered the tent that was said to be Konan's. He was taken back a bit by the sight of Konan sitting across from Princess Koyuki, talking casually to one another before looking at the blonde. Konan smiled and stood up from the bed, "Hey Naruto."

"Hey Konan-chan…um…can I talk to you?" The blue haired woman nodded before turning to Koyuki. The princess looked at Naruto, then up at the older woman and nodded too.

Konan and Naruto exited the tent. The older Akatsuki member looked down at her junior, "What's wrong Naruto?" The blonde shifted nervously for a moment. Konan waited patiently for the boy to say something.

"Sakura's in the Land of Snow…" Konan's eyes widened a bit. She quickly hid the shock from her face. The look on Naruto's face told Konan that the boy obviously had a rough encounter with her. "I um…I need to know what to do."

"What?" The word inadvertently flew out of Konan's mouth. She was confused what Naruto meant by that.

"You…I don't know what to do. I was ready to do this mission and head home. Now that Sakura-chan is here…" Naruto paused, running both hands through his hair. Konan's eyes softened, feeling sympathy for the boy. "I don't know if I should avoid her, try to talk to her, focus on my mission and my duty or…I just don't know."

"Naruto…" Konan knelt down in the snow and put her hands on the boy's shoulders. She smiled as softly as she could, "I'll talk with Jiraiya sensei about this and see what we can do. We'll make it so that you won't have to encounter Sakura for this mission and-,"

"That's not the point! I need to get a better idea of _what_ I want to do about this! I don't know if I want to avoid her or confront her again or what!" Konan sighed softly, removing her hands from Naruto's shoulders, but remaining at eyelevel with him.

"I can't answer that Naruto. You just have to listen to your heart on this matter." The blonde sighed, lowering his eyes to the white powder beneath his feet. Konan gave a weary smile, "I know it's not the answer you're looking for. But you're the only one who can answer this question." Naruto's head hung low. Konan pitied the kid like this. She rarely saw Naruto moping and saddened like this. She didn't like it.

"Do you remember what I told you in the Land of Frost?" Konan smiled at Naruto, adding a light hum. The blonde was very obviously fighting back a smile which wanted to form on his features. "If you believe strongly enough that something can happen between you two, then it'll happen. But Naruto, you've got to ask yourself if she really is worth it? And not with this," Konan said, pressing her finger against Naruto's head, "But with this." She poked the blonde's chest. Naruto chuckled lowly before looking up at Konan, offering a sheepish smile. The blue haired woman returned a warming smile to the boy she saw as her brother.

Naruto leaned forward and hugged Konan as tightly as he could. The Akatsuki founder smiled and wrapped both of her arms around Naruto.

"If you really care about Sakura as much as you do, hold onto the faith that you two _will_ be together one day. It may be a long road until then, but in the end it'll be worth it."

"Thanks Konan-chan…" Naruto smiled against his sister's shoulder before easing his grip a bit. Konan smiled and placed her hand firmly on top of Naruto's hand. The boy made a face, looking up at Konan's hand before looking back at Konan's smiling face. Naruto closed his eyes and grinned his trademark grin.

"Excuse me…" Konan and Naruto looked to the sound of the voice. Konan recognized the man as Kiriya, the assassin who was assigned to the mission. The silver haired young man smiled in a friendly manner, eyes closed and without a hint of any other hidden expression besides kindness. That's why Konan hated assassins: they kept too much hidden. "Did I hear you correctly when you said 'Sakura' was here in the Land of Snow?"

Immediately, Naruto and Konan's expressions hardened. Konan was mostly irritated that Kiriya had been eavesdropping on her conversation with Naruto. The young blonde was put on edge as to why this man cared about Sakura.

"So what if we did," Naruto snapped.

"Just professional curiosity. My name is Kiriya, it's a pleasure to meet you Naruto Uzumaki, and Lady Konan. I look forward to working with you both for the duration of this campaign." Kiriya turned around and walked into the heart of the camp. Naruto and Konan watched the young man skeptically as he disappeared into the crowd of soldiers.

* * *

The winds were freezing, blistering cold. Izumi clung her cloak to her body as she ran through the blizzard. She waited on the ship after the Alliance team had gotten onto the Land of Snow, give them a head start before tracking them. Due to the blizzard, she lost track of any trail left behind by the Alliance, or anyone for that matter.

'_Why didn't you just stay on the ship? Stupid, stupid, STUPID!'_

Izumi continued to curse herself as she went further into the blizzard. If Chiyo were alive to see her now, Izumi would be certain that her master would lecture her on, of all things, that she should have worn layers. Chiyo was more than happy to always let Izumi make her own mistakes, and then learn from them. Thing was: Izumi was as stubborn as Chiyo was.

The young puppet user shook her head in frustration. Even at this point she was thinking of her master in the present tense. Her eyes fell into depression as she had to remind herself that Chiyo and Ebizo were gone.

A strange noise caused Izumi to turn her head. It sounded like a whirling, motorized noise. Out of the blizzard came a strange looking vehicle, which was propelled by some sort of engine, as far as Izumi could tell. The vehicle pulled to a stop next to Izumi. The young puppet user prepared herself, in case if the shinobi of the Land of Snow were occupants inside. A man wearing a cap, sporting a full beard and mittens stuck his head out of the window.

"Hey lady, what're you doing out here all by yourself?" Izumi sighed, lowering her guard to the citizen. "Hop in back! We'll take you to our town."

"Thank you," Izumi said over the whirling winds.

She quickly ran to the back end of the vehicle and pulled aside one of the flaps. Inside the trailer of the vehicle were several more people. An old woman, a middle aged man, and two young girls stared at Izumi with heartwarming smiles. The young puppet user was a bit taken back before the vehicle started to lurch forward. Izumi quickly grabbed onto the trailer and hopped in the back.

"You alright Miss," the middle aged man asked. Izumi only nodded as she shivered violently. "I've never seen you around these parts before. Which village do you come from?"

"I…I'm not from the Land of Snow. I'm…I guess you could say a nomad from the Land of Wind. My name is Izumi."

The middle aged man smiled before looking towards the back of the trailer, "Well, we're heading to our village. It's only a couple of miles away. We'll help you get warmed up there."

"What's a citizen of the Land of Wind doing in the Land of Snow," the old woman asked.

"I…"

"Grandma," one of the two little girls whispered. "She doesn't need to be harped at right now, okay?" Grandma smiled at her granddaughter and nodded.

Izumi cautiously looked at the old woman. It didn't take a genius to register the accusation in Grandma's tone. She knew something was wrong. Izumi couldn't spend too much time in the next village without drawing unwanted attention. She decided to stock up on supplies in the village and then head towards the castle of Doto Kazahana. Hopefully it wasn't too late to talk him out of getting involved with the coming war.

* * *

Naruto sat on a mat in his tent, legs crossed, eyes closed and hands on his knees. The Jinchuriki focused on his breathing. He took a deep breath in, and a deep breath out, focusing on his flowing chakra.

In an instant, he was taken into his subconscious.

Naruto stood in what appeared to be a sewer or something, standing in front of a large gate. On the other side of the gate burned a pair of fury-filled red eyes that focused on Naruto. A dark, low chuckle came as well before the creature came into view.

"Kyuubi," Naruto murmured.

"What do you want boy," the demon fox questioned.

"Don't get lippy with me. It's not like you were busy or anything." The Kyuubi huffed angrily, the air from his breath blowing against Naruto. The blonde turned his head, shielding his face with his arm as his Akatsuki jacket fluttered. Naruto looked back up at the Kyuubi, eyes narrowed in anger before pointing a finger of accusation at the demon. "I didn't ask for your help in the fight back there! You only give me your chakra when _I_ ask it, got it you stupid fox!"

The Kyuubi let out a mocking chuckle before rising up on his two front legs to look down at Naruto. Despite the _vast_ height difference, Naruto kept his eyes focused on the Kyuubi's, glaring up at the demon fox with immense anger.

"You're a foolish little child you know that? You carry so much hatred, hatred I have _nothing_ to do with. I am a being of immense and immeasurable anger and hatred. It's only natural that my power would become yours as soon as you felt as much hatred as you did during that fight." Naruto's eyes narrowed a bit before he lowered his head to the ground. The Kyuubi chuckled before leaning forward, his nose almost touching the bars of his prison. "It wasn't hatred you held towards that little girl. It was hatred you had for yourself. The fact you manipulated, lied, and used her. The fact you hate yourself because she hates you. I figure the best way to get rid of your hatred would be to eliminate the girl all together."

Naruto growled angrily, snapping his eyes back up at the demon fox. The Kyuubi grinned malevolently before chuckling again. "Like you give a damn about me," Naruto seethed. "Killing Sakura, especially by _my_ hand would only breed more hatred and you know it you stupid thing!"

"I'll admit, your love for the girl is impressive," Kyuubi stated. "To be able to _stop_ my power, and fight my influence during your battle with the pink haired little girl is worthy of my praise, no matter how little of a victory you attained."

Naruto sighed through his nose. It certainly wasn't easy fighting the Kyuubi's influence during the recent battle. But if he hadn't, Naruto knew that Sakura would have been killed.

"It won't last though boy. Certainly you remember the first time you used my chakra don't you?"

"_DEMON!"_

"_You damned beast!" Naruto sobbed quietly, hiding in the bushes. Two Akatsuki members chased Naruto out of the base, threatening to kill him. Naruto knew that these two specific members had issues with him, but the fact they had a bit too much to drink didn't help their misplaced anger. "Where are ya you fucking demon?"_

_Naruto bit his finger to keep his sobs from escaping his lips. Didn't they understand? He was just a kid. He wasn't a demon. He wasn't the Nine Tailed Fox demon. Tears ran down Naruto's cheek as sadness and sorrow washed over his heart. But there was a hint of another emotion that lingered with the others. It was faint, hardly noticeable, but it was still there._

_Hatred._

_Naruto blocked out the men's slurred curses to try and get him out of hiding. He was too wrapped up in his own mind, his own thoughts about how unfair his life was. Jiraiya told him not too long ago about how Konoha's Yellow Flash sealed the Kyuubi inside Naruto, his own son. For whatever reason, nobody knew._

_The hatred grew, causing Naruto's hot tears to flow faster down his face. He hated these men for being ignorant bastards. He hated his father for sealing the demon inside of him, for giving up such an unbearable burden._

"_Naruto? Naruto are you out here?"_

_The blonde's eyes snapped open in fear. Not for himself, but for his friend. Naruto turned his head and looked out through the bush. He saw one of his few friends, Kiba Inuzuka walking out in the open._

"_Hey! Is that the demon brat?" The two drunken men rushed towards Kiba._

"_No," Naruto whispered._

_Kiba turned in shock before he was shoved to the ground by one of the men. The young boy cried out in shock before the two drunken men started pounding away on Kiba._

_Naruto's eyes were giant orbs, full of pain and horror. His friend, one of his few friends in this horrible world, was getting beaten to death because of him. Naruto closed his eyes shut, hot tears seeping through his eyelids and spilling out onto his face. The hatred built up higher and higher, threatening to break. The blonde reopened his eyes, which were now burning red with slit pupils._

"_Hey wait," one of the men murmured. "This ain't the demon kid! It's just some dumb shit kid."_

"_Oh…whoops…"_

_An inhuman, booming roar exploded in the forest. The two drunken men turned around in fright as powerful shockwaves of power shook the ground and caused the wind to blow outward like a powerful tornado. The source of the disruption was Naruto, red swirling chakra flowing around him. The whisker marks on his cheeks darkened, the spikes in his hair sharper and more numerous._

"_The demon brat!"_

_Naruto's eyes moved down to Kiba, who was on the ground, bleeding, broken, and battered. The Jinchuriki's eyes moved back up to the two men who caused Kiba so much pain._

"_**I'm gonna kill you…"**_

_Naruto vanished in a flash. The two men gasped in shock before Naruto appeared in front of them both. The young blonde swung his arm at one man. The chakra claws ripped through the man's chest, digging into his ribcage before flinging him to the side with tremendous force. The man flew through the woods and slammed hard into a thick tree, dead on impact as blood poured out of his body._

_Naruto turned to the other man who started trembling in fear. The blonde snarled before taking a step towards him, __**"What's wrong? Didn't you want to kill me? The demon brat? The worthless piece of shit kid who killed hundreds?"**_

"_I-I didn't mean that! I swear I didn't!"_

_Naruto's eyes bulged in rage. This man had the nerve to call Naruto the names he did, chase him out of his own home, beat his friend to near death, and had the nerve to deny his crimes? Naruto threw his head back, screaming in outright fury. The Kyuubi's chakra exploded around him, causing the drunken man to cry out in terror and fall back on his rear. Naruto pulled his arm back, clenching his hand into a fist before throwing it down in full force. The boy's fist punched a hole straight through the man's chest, and through the ground underneath him. The man died instantly._

_Naruto pulled his arm back and continued to punch the man for all his worth. The punches didn't carry the same force or power that the first one did, but Naruto continued to wail on the man regardless._

"_NARUTO!" The blonde snapped his head up, snarling viciously at the shadows._

_Jiraiya and Konan stepped out of the shadows, looking down at the blood. Jiraiya's eyes were narrowed in caution, unsure of what Naruto would do in this state. "Naruto, calm down. This isn't you."_

_Naruto sniffed, a strange scent in his nose. The boy looked around, his demonic eyes picking up more figures in the shadows. Naruto snapped his head to Jiraiya and Konan, ready to explode on them in outrage. However, as soon as the boy turned his head, Jiraiya slammed his oversized palm against his forehead, pressing a seal against the boy's head hard. Naruto's eyes widened as the chakra started to fade away, repressed back into the Kyuubi's seal._

_The blonde's eyes flickered as they returned to their normal blue color. Jiraiya pulled his hand and the seal away, eyes still narrowed on Naruto. The blonde looked at his godfather in confusion. Slowly, Naruto's eyes traveled down to the corpse underneath him. He screamed out in fright, moving away and falling off of the body. Immediately, the boy started crying his heart out._

_Konan quickly moved forward to comfort Naruto. Jiraiya kept his eyes focused on his godson for a moment before looking down at the body at his feet. The Sannin held no pity for the man, or his partner. He turned his head forward, looking on as Konan hugged Naruto tightly, trying to calm him down. The young eight year old was hysterical, and having a full blown panic attack. Jiraiya's eyes softened at the sight. Naruto shouldn't have witnessed, let alone committed, a kill at his tender age._

"_Jiraiya sensei…"_

"_Take the others back to base Yahiko," Jiraiya whispered. "And take the worthless bodies out of here."_

"_Jiraiya sensei, they were Akatsuki shinobi," Yahiko replied sharply. "They believed in our cause and-,"_

"_And they threatened my godson, and almost beat an innocent child to death," Jiraiya finished harshly. The Sannin looked down at the man's body at his feet. "They wanted to kill Naruto. If you ask me they deserved this fate."_

"_That's not fair to them," Yahiko murmured._

"_And how is it fair to Naruto?" Yahiko remained silent. Jiraiya turned his head to Naruto and Konan. "Take the bodies out of here and get Kiba to Tsunade." Jiraiya walked forward while Yahiko scowled._

_A few shinobi jumped out of the shadows, picking up the corpses and following Yahiko and the others out. Naruto's eyes moved up as Hana carried her little brother in her arms. The blonde chanced a look up at Hana, expecting her to be outright furious and blaming Naruto for Kiba's condition. The older Inuzuka however simply looked over at Naruto, tears running down her face. Naruto didn't know how, but he knew the tears were not just meant for Kiba, but for himself as well. Hana turned and left with the rest of the group, not daring to sob or hide her tears._

_Naruto made no effort to hide his pain, clinging to Konan's jacket and crying into her. The blue haired woman simply held the boy against her, trying to comfort her as best as she could. Jiraiya knelt down behind Naruto, placing one hand on the boy's shoulder._

"_It's okay son," Jiraiya whispered. Naruto sobbed loudly, sniffing and whimpering at the act he did. "It's okay Naruto…"_

"_It's not your fault," Konan murmured softly into the boy's ear. "Nobody blames you." Naruto started crying full force, tears running down his burning face. Konan closed her eyes, resting a hand on the back of the boy's head, "We still love you Naruto. This wasn't your fault…"_

Naruto's eyes were glued to the floor. He dared not to look up at the stupid demon inside of him. Despite this, the Kyuubi chuckled and lowered his head down towards Naruto. "It felt good didn't it? Killing those who caused you so much pain, so much anger and hatred. That's the way you do things Naruto. The way _we_ do things."

"I'm not you," Naruto screamed, snapping his head up at the Kyuubi. "I'm NOTHING like you! You just stay in this freaking cage and keep your chakra to yourself until _I_ ask for it!"

"You do not command me boy," Kyuubi roared. "You may have me caged, but I'm far from being your little pet!" Naruto scowled at the growling fox demon. The two exchanged a heated, angry glare. Finally, Naruto simply turned around sharply and began walking away.

"Just remember your place stupid fox," Naruto whispered softly. Despite it being low in volume, the Kyuubi heard the boy's words and let out an enraged roar just as Naruto hopped out of his subconscious.

Naruto slowly opened his eyes and sighed heavily. He always hated talking to the Kyuubi. The flap of his tent opened, causing the boy to look up. Haku and Hanabi entered, staring over at Naruto.

"You busy," Haku asked.

"Not anymore. What's up?" Naruto stood to his feet as Haku and Hanabi entered the tent.

"Apparently, General Sandayu, Jiraiya-sama, and Konan-chan are all working on a one-shot plan to overthrow Doto," Hanabi explained. Naruto's eyes widened, a light gasp escaping his lips.

"How…how're we going to even do that?"

"It's not so much a one-hit-kill plan," Haku corrected, offering a small smile. "It's more of a multi-step process that'll cause one very large, very successful result. Sandayu is going to take us to a nearby village, where there are stocks of chakra armor and other technology that they've stolen from the Land of Snow that we can use in the coming fight. The village, thankfully, is a little over an hour away if we move quickly."

"We're leaving shortly Naruto-kun," Hanabi added with a soft voice.

"Alright. I'll start getting ready." Haku nodded and left the tent. Hanabi stayed as Naruto turned around to start gathering his things.

"Do you need any help Naruto-kun?" The blonde looked back with a perplexed look on his face.

"Uh…well you should get your things together first Hanabi-chan."

"I didn't bring anything really." Naruto raised a curious brow to that statement. "Being in the family I was raised in, I didn't have many material things. I've learned to live without." The blonde gave a warm smile before straightening his back.

"Sure, I guess you can help if you really want Hanabi-chan." The young Hyuga smiled before moving forward to help Naruto with his packing.

* * *

Sakura wasn't sure what to think anymore. She sat in her room in Doto's Castle, going through her thoughts. What to think of Naruto appearing? Sakura had no idea why he of all people had to appear in the Land of Snow. What baffled her even further was her unexplainable reaction to seeing the Kyuubi's chakra coming out of Naruto. Looking back on it now: rushing Naruto in a blind fury was a stupid move.

A soft knocking on her door caused Sakura to turn her head. The door opened and Kurotsuchi poked her head in. "Hey buddy! How're you feeling?"

"I'm…I'm fine Kurotsuchi." Sakura mustered the most convincing smile she could offer. Kurotsuchi's eyes narrowed before she walked into the room, closing the door behind her.

"What's wrong?" Her smile vanished, replaced again by her pondering face. Kurotsuchi walked closer and sat on the edge of the bed, looking at her friend with concern.

"I…I'm just thinking about my fight with Naruto."

"The blonde hunk of boy-toy you mean?" Sakura's face immediately reddened before she snapped her eyes over at her friend. The pink haired girl started stammering uncontrollably, causing Kurotsuchi to grin at her, "Well he's far from a man, so I can't call him 'man-meat.' Besides, he is cute."

"Th-that has _nothing_ to do with anything!"

"Zaku and Dosu told me about your crush on him," Kurotsuchi explained. "Then they sent me in to try and find out what was wrong with you." Sakura narrowed her eyes, glaring through the door where she had no doubt her teammates were eavesdropping. Kurotsuchi smiled and placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, causing the young girl to turn her head around. "Don't get too caught up about it. I mean it's not like you still have a crush on him do you?"

Sakura paused, moving her eyes away from her friend. She honestly had no idea what her feelings were anymore. After today's events, it was obviously how she felt about the Kyuubi. But Naruto himself was a different matter entirely.

"_He still killed my father," Sakura muttered_.

"_No, that was the Kyuubi that killed your father," Higure replied with a hardened tone. Sakura was being carried on her uncle's back, having just finished the fight against Gaara with the aid of a certain blonde Jinchuriki after Akatsuki revealed themselves. "Naruto is completely different from that monster." He looked back over his shoulder, "If anything you should see Naruto as a hero who's keeping that monster locked up and preventing it from killing anyone else's father. I know you're mad that Naruto lied to you, but he did fight tooth and nail to save you. He even worked with some retired shinobi of Konoha, who he didn't know if he could trust or not. That shows that he does care for you on some level. If you're angry at Naruto, be angry at the boy, not the demon inside of him."_

Sakura knew that she wasn't mad at Naruto anymore. Just upset with him. She's mistaking her hatred for the Kyuubi with Naruto. She practically scoffed at the idea of her uncle lecturing her about that issue again. Especially now that she admitted she was in the wrong.

"Sakura…not to sound insensitive…but Naruto is the enemy," Kurotsuchi murmured. The Iwa kunoichi placed her hand supportively on Sakura's leg.

"I'm not like you Kurotsuchi," Sakura whispered softly. "I…I don't think I can just ignore my feelings about Naruto. Not without some type of closure. Last time I met him, I didn't really give him a real chance to explain himself."

"He lied, manipulated, and used you Sakura-chan. There's no reason you should give him a reason to explain himself." Sakura sighed through her nose, shifting her emerald eyes over to Kurotsuchi.

She wasn't Kurotsuchi. In Iwa, shinobi are trained that duty and survival of the village comes above all else. That's why the death of Onoki had so far been taken with little to no issues in the village. The people of Iwa saw their village as the pinnacle of power and leadership, and their Tsuchikage was more or less a symbol of that power. Nothing more, nothing less. Sakura couldn't just bury her emotions so easily. She couldn't just say 'duty comes first' and try to capture Naruto. Hell, she was still dealing with residual feelings for Sasuke. It's not like she _wanted_ to keep holding these feelings for Naruto. If she could she would just cast them aside and continue on with her life and duty to the Alliance. But she, for some unexplainable reason, couldn't do it.

The pink haired kunoichi sighed before turning her head away from Kurotsuchi, "Can we change topics please…?"

"Sure," Kurotsuchi whispered. An awkward pause floated in the air as neither girl said a word.

Sakura looked back at her friend and offered the first spark of conversation, "So how're things in your village…?"

"Honestly," Kurotsuchi gave a tired half-smile, "they could be a lot worse all things considering. Initially, nobody was upset that Mao-sama took over the Tsuchikage position. Some of the older veterans in the village had some issue, being long time supporters of my grandfather, but dad has managed to talk _some_ of them down. But, since news of a war coming up against the Land of Lightning and Water, it's gotten some of the younger population aroused as well."

"Why," Sakura asked, her tone dropping slightly.

Kurotsuchi shrugged, rather carelessly, "They're pissed because we killed Onoki to avoid a war with Konoha, when we could have just joined with Kumo and Kiri. They're just being idealistic though. The Land of Lightning and Land of Earth have had WAY too many scuffles to ever get along. Not full blown wars, like we've had with Konoha, but enough blows traded back and forth that we hate each other."

"Really," Sakura questioned. "I've never heard of the Land of Lightning and Earth having issues before."

"Again: very small scale blows that've been traded between us. Espionage, sabotage, 'accidental' attacks on scouting patrols, and just other little things like that. It's basically two children poking fun at each other until they go all out on one another. Still, we've pissed of the Raikage enough, and Kumo has pissed us off enough that I don't see any way of us working together, and functionally, any time soon."

"But you all can work with Konoha well enough…?"

"Lord Mao is actually making things work really well with the rest of the Alliance and our village. Not only that, but Konoha has loosened it's restraints on the village. Our economy is booming, trade, as you saw at Granite Port, is skyrocketing. We've even started going on joint missions with Sunagakure."

"Why is that special," Sakura tilted her head as she asked her question.

"You just don't know anything do ya?" Sakura narrowed her eyes while Kurotsuchi grinned teasingly. "Iwagakure has pretty much bumped heads with everyone. Our Second Tsuchikage, Mu-sama, was the archrival of the Land of Water's Second Mizukage. The two actually ended up killing each other in combat. I told you about the animosity with Kumogakure, mostly caused by Onoki bumping heads with the Third Raikage, and the current Raikage, the Third's son. We basically had the same relationship with Sunagakure for awhile. Since we shared borders, we 'split' the mission income with them. By split, I mean we got WAY more than our fair share. Combine that with your little border wars, and well…you can connect the dots. The Land of Rain was the basic battleground for our war against you guys and Suna. And last but not least, obviously, with Konoha, we had a huge war, which led to us being dragged into your Alliance."

Sakura couldn't help but smirk. She never imagined Iwagakure as having such a bloated ego. Especially since Kurotsuchi was one of the nicest and accepting people Sakura had ever met. Perhaps Kurotsuchi was a symbol for change in Iwagakure, along with the new Tsuchikage.

"So…I haven't caused riots in the street and I don't have a mob screaming for my blood do I?"

"Not that I'm aware of," Kurotsuchi replied with a smile. "The closest thing to it would be those old guys who served with Onoki their whole life, and the younger kids who don't like change like the old guys. But if a mob does demand to spill your blood, I'll be sure to kick their asses for ya buddy." Sakura smiled, hoping that Kurotsuchi wouldn't have to resort to killing her own people for Sakura's sake.

She still wasn't sure how to feel about overthrowing an entire government over night. Zaku and Dosu didn't seem to be bothered by it, and from what Sakura heard, Zaku did most of the fighting for the duration of the battle. Not only that, but Dosu was invaluable during that fight as well with his Eight Branches Strike.

Sakura's eyes fell to the bed, "Kurotsuchi…" The Iwa kunoichi looked up at Sakura, a look of curiosity in her eyes. "I…I'm sorry…for what I did." Tears started to build in Sakura's eyes.

She had taken Kurotsuchi's grandfather. One of the last relatives her friend had in this world, and she killed him. Even to this day she felt horrible for it. She couldn't even fathom one of her friends taking her Uncle Higure away from her.

"Are you still going on about that…?" Sakura gasped in confusion, snapping her head up to Kurotsuchi. To her surprise, Kurotsuchi was smiling, not so much as a trace of pain on her face. "He stabbed me Sakura-chan. I put myself between you and him because I didn't want to see you two kill each other, not so Onoki could send his people to their death. Call me crazy: but my loyalty to my friends is unparalleled. And…well there was just something about you that called out to me." The young woman grinned, rubbing the back of her neck nervously as she chuckled, "Not to sound overly romantic, but I guess you could say I felt as though we were kindred spirits."

"Kurotsuchi-chan…"

"I loved my grandpa to death," the kunoichi continued. "I still love him with all of my being, despite the fact he nearly killed me. Despite the fact Iwagakure hated Konohagakure so much, they wanted change more than war. We just never could've imagined that change with Konoha, with Danzo, would have been possible. But Lord Mao, he's paving a new way for us all, and making things in the Alliance fairer for everyone in Iwagakure. Like I told you: Iwagakure has never been better. From what I hear, we haven't had this type of prosperity since the height of the Second Tsuchikage, Mu-sama's rule. The village itself is thriving, which is what grandpa always wanted. Granted, it's not in the way he wanted, but it's better than nothing in my opinion."

"Still…I feel terrible. I shouldn't have had anything to do with your village's government…"

"But you did, things happened, and it's all in the past!" Kurotsuchi still kept up her smile, putting her hand on Sakura's shoulder. "I don't blame you. Stop beating yourself up for everything Sakura-chan. I think the biggest issue you're having right now is you're carrying too many unresolved feelings on things. Your crush with Naruto, your falling out with him, your overthrowing grandpa, Naruto appearing now. You've gotta try to settle some of these issues okay?" Sakura nodded, wiping away the tears that built in her eyes. Kurotsuchi's smile widened before giving a firm grip on Sakura's shoulder. "And I'm here to help you if you need it. Zaku and Dosu too. If we can help you resolve any of these feelings, don't hesitate to ask okay?"

"Aright," Sakura murmured. The pink haired kunoichi leaned forward and hugged Kurotsuchi, to which she immediately returned. "You're a good friend Kuro-chan…"

"Right back at ya…Kitten…" Sakura's eyes snapped open, twitching in a sudden shock of frustration.

Zaku and Dosu gave each other a fearful look, "Uh oh…" The door exploded in front of them, throwing both of them to the floor. Kurotsuchi came running out of Sakura's room, laughing as she ran from Sakura.

The pink haired kunoichi stopped in her tracks and turned her head, looking at her teammates lying on the floor. "Uh oh," they both murmured from the floor.

Kurotsuchi jumped over Sakura and ran towards Dosu and Zaku, "RUN!" The three shinobi all sprinted down the halls while Sakura chased after them.

"YOU'RE DEAD FOR TELLING KUROTSUCHI THAT NICKNAME," Sakura shouted at her teammates, a blinding fury in her eyes.

"It was Zaku!"

"That is SUCH crap," Zaku snapped at his teammate, who was pointing an accusing finger at him.

At the end of the hall, Kimimaro, Sakon, and Tayuya stood to cut the four mischievous shinobi off in their tracks. They all slid to a stop, looking at the three Chunin before them. "Doto has given us a mission. His spies have apparently found a village that supports the rebels, and has been stockpiling various devices that Doto has been manufacturing. A group of Doto's army has already taken the village over, and now we just need to head there to prepare for the ambush."

"When are we leaving," Kurotsuchi asked.

"Now," Tayuya replied. "Get your shit and move out."

"It'll take us about an hour to get there using Lord Doto's transports," Sakon added. "We'll back up Nadare's forces and crush this rebellion, and hopefully a portion of Akatsuki as well."

The three Serpents walked down the hall, leaving the four shinobi by themselves. Wordlessly, they all exchanged glances before heading to their rooms to gather their needed supplies.

Sakura sighed softly, knowing in the back of her mind that she would without a doubt meet Naruto again. Kurotsuchi was right: she needed to get some of her feelings in order. The thing was, Sakura didn't know if she'd get the time to talk things out with Naruto…or if Naruto wouldn't just attack her on sight like she did to him.

* * *

The truck came to a stop, the brakes screeching lightly. Izumi looked up as the middle aged man and his two daughters jumped out. The old woman glanced over at Izumi before following her family. The young puppet user got out of the truck. As soon as her feet touched the snow, the truck raced off. Izumi looked up, gasping lightly in shock.

The village was filled with Yuki shinobi, who were forcing citizens out of their homes and herding them off to the side. Izumi and the family were all surrounded by Yuki shinobi shortly. One man approached them, a man who stood out from the rest of the shinobi, obviously as a commander of sorts.

"Nice of you to join us," the man said. "I'm Lord Doto's right hand, Nadare. If you'll be so kind, please join the rest of your fellow citizens."

"What's the meaning of this," the father questioned furiously.

"We have reason to believe at least one person in this village is aiding the rebels against Lord Doto. We also know for a fact that the rebels, as well as the internationally wanted criminals from the Akatsuki Clan are heading towards this town. We're going to set up a small little surprise for them."

"Can't you take your battle outside of our home," the father snapped. "People live here, we barely get by as it is. The last thing our town needs is to be torn apart by your war!"

"It's the war of our country," Nadare replied evenly. He motioned to his subordinates.

One shinobi put a hand on one of the twins. The father rushed the shinobi, and was quickly taken down by a second shinobi, pinned to the ground. The rest of the Yuki ninja tensed, ready to take everyone out in an instant.

"Father," the twins cried out.

"Stop this," Izumi snapped as she slid between the family and Nadara. The Yuki commander cocked a curious brow, humming lowly. He could tell instantly from Izumi's speed alone that she wasn't an average citizen. "Please…I wish to have an audience with your master." The family gasped, while the shinobi all turned to Izumi in befuddlement. Nadare simply smirked before crossing his arms.

"And why would you like to meet Lord Doto?"

"My name is Izumi, student and adopted daughter of the Honored Siblings of Sunagakure." Nadare's eyes hardened as she said this. Izumi noted that nobody else made a sound. Most likely nobody had heard of the Honored Siblings, let alone Izumi herself, this far out into the mainland. "I simply want a chance to talk Doto Kazahana to stay out of the war. It will only mean unnecessary bloodshed and strife for your people."

"Lord Doto's choices are his own," Nadare stated simply. "If he wishes to get involved in the coming war, he will do it. I know the master well enough to safely say he won't be swayed by a foolish child like you."

"Don't you get it? If you get involved in this war, you'll be responsible for killing countless innocents! Hundreds of children will become orphans, families will be torn apart! You and your people will be responsible for it!"

Nadare sneered as he lowered his arms to his side, "Oh, an orphan of war? Excuse me for being so insensitive, but we already know what's at stake. Lord Doto is going to do as he wishes, and take over the Five Great Shinobi Nations on his own."

"How can you _want_ to be involved in a war?" Izumi's eyes softened, images of Chiyo and Ebizo coming back from memory. "Surely you can't be so cold hearted that you want to be apart of a war…"

"This land is nothing but cold," Nadare snapped. "Those who are weak or unprepared die off from the weather alone. This country and its people must be STRONG in order to survive. The only way to be strong in such a harsh environment as this is to adapt to it, we must become as cold as the land itself. Simply put, Princess of Puppets: we don't care."

"NADARE!" The Yuki commander snapped his head to the side, seeing a large group of people rushing at him, led by Sandayu.

"Damn it," Nadare swore, "We end up getting ambushed. ATTACK!" The Yuki shinobi all immediately turned their attention to the rebels and Akatsuki and charged in, screaming at the top of their lungs.

Izumi lashed her hand out, sending chakra strings at Nadare. To the young puppet user's shock, her chakra strings didn't stick. Nadare turned his head, sneering gleefully as he realized what Izumi was trying to do. He swung a fist at the young girl, who sprung back and readied herself for a bout of taijutsu.

"Ice style," Nadare snarled as he performed a series of hand signs, "ice wolf jutsu!" The snow behind Nadare swirled around, forming a large wolf which rushed Izumi. The puppet user prepared herself, but the wolf was soon torn to shreds by a barrage of paper sheets.

Izumi gasped and looked up to the sky as a woman wearing an Akatsuki cloak with blue hair floated down. The young puppet user couldn't help but gasp in shock at the older woman's paper angelic wings.

"I'll handle this," Konan said, turning to the mysterious young girl. "You get away from here, got it?"

"No please, let me help negotiate a-," Izumi's words were cut off by a pair of kunai with ice bombs attached. The two woman turned their heads to the blades right before the tiny balls of ice hit the metal knives. They both sprung backwards as pillars of ice jutted out from the ground. "Drat!"

The rebels and Akatsuki clashed with Yuki forces. Nadare's forces were easily outnumbered but the rebels and Akatsuki, since Konan arrived with her reinforcements. The Yuki forces had their chakra armor, but that did little good once their enemy got in close enough to engage them in hand-to-hand combat.

Meanwhile, in the skies, Deidara stood on top of his clay bird, looking down at the battle and the small down. Behind him stood Princess Koyuki and Naruto Uzumaki, the former of which was on her knees, clinging to the clay bird in fear.

"What the hell is her problem," Deidara asked, looking back over his shoulder.

"I don't like heights," Koyuki snapped. Deidara huffed before turning his eyes back to the horizon.

"It'll be alright Koyuki-chan," Naruto assure, standing high on top of the bird and looking down to the ground. The princess scowled silently before daring a look over the edge of the bird.

Though the princess hated to admit it, she had grown rather fond of Akatsuki. After Naruto's selfless risking of his life to save her, and their continued kindness while Koyuki was less than tolerable was slowly breaking through. Still, she knew going up against Doto was suicide. Just because she thought their cause was pointless didn't mean that Koyuki didn't take a liking to the Akatsuki group.

"So when is the princess supposed to make her grand appearance," Deidara asked, pressing on his scope to zoom into the horizon. "Before reinforcements show up I hope."

"Sandayu is going to give the signal," Naruto replied. "Then we're gonna swoop down and show Koyuki to the help and help bring about an uprising."

"Um…we may want to hurry that introduction along." Naruto and Koyuki looked up to Deidara, who had a pale face focused on the horizon. The Jinchuriki and the princess looked in the same direction as Deidara and were immediately struck with terrified faces.

A fleet of trucks, snow mobiles, and shinobi on board like contraptions that propelled them forward, along with shinobi gliding along the winds on artificial wings were rushing towards the town. The reinforcements however were dwarfed by a massive flying blimp which came towards them.

"Naruto, get the princess down there and get ready to present her to the people," Deidara snapped. Naruto immediately picked up Koyuki in his arms. The princess instinctively wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck, both of them looking over at Deidara skeptically.

"What're you going to do," Naruto asked.

"I'm gonna try to slow down the reinforcements a bit," Deidara replied. "Get the princess and get off!" The blonde Jinchuriki immediately jumped off of the clay bird's back. Koyuki clung tighter to Naruto, screaming in fear as the two fell towards the ground.

Deidara immediately shot off into the distance, gritting his teeth, "I must be crazy. There are way too many airborne enemies for even ME to deal with!" The artist cursed himself for inexplicably becoming so selfless in his short time with Akatsuki. Deidara remembered back in the Land of Frost, when Naruto carried him and his conversation with the fellow blonde. The bomber grinned, closing his eyes before huffing, "Stupid kid."

Deidara reached into his clay pouch, readying his bombs for the enemy.

Naruto landed in the snow hard, still managing to keep Koyuki off the ground. "You alright princess?" Koyuki nodded before stepping onto the ground. Naruto stood up, looking for the nearest area where he and Koyuki could go to be safe.

"Reinforcements," one of the citizens shouted. Koyuki and Naruto turned around as the civilians started panicking.

"We're all going to die! That's Doto's personal airship," one man added.

"Wait, is that…the princess!" The citizens turned around, all looking to Koyuki. Despite her fame as a movie actress, Koyuki found herself dumbfounded by the longing stares of admiration she was getting from the people.

"The princess has come back!"

"She's going to bring peace to our country!" One man bent down and picked up a sword dropped by a Yuki shinobi.

"Come on everyone! We need to help the princess retake her land!" The citizens all picked up any weapon, or object that could be used as a weapon, and then rushed in to stop the reinforcements.

Koyuki gasped, coming out of her trance, "NO! You idiots! Don't throw your lives away!" The citizens were already too far down the trail. The older men led the charge while younger men and even a few teenagers and women followed behind them. "YOU'RE ALL INSANE!"

Koyuki immediately chased after the mob of civilians who went to rush the Yuki reinforcements. Naruto gasped and rushed after the princess, "Wait!"

Mizore looked up as Deidara flew overhead. A single came over his earpiece, _"Mizore, lead the charge and reinforce Nadare. I think Fubuki and her forces can handle one airborne pest."_

"As you wish Lord Doto!" Mizore sped forward, signaling for his troops to follow. "Crush anyone who gets in our way!"

Deidara looked down, watching as the ground troops moved right under him, "Oh I don't think so! Naruto my man, this is my tribute to you! My fastest pieces of art yet!" Deidara flung his arms out, releasing six forms which erupted in clouds of smoke.

Out of the smoke came six clay foxes, which howled lightly as they fell towards the ground. As the bombs fell to the ground, they went unnoticed by the Yuki shinobi. Two of the six foxes landed on the tops of a couple of trucks. The explosions destroyed both trucks, engulfing them and the occupants in flames. The other four foxes all sprinted as fast as they could, slowly catching up with Mizore's forces.

Deidara watched one bomb carefully as it slowly entered the center of a group of enemies. The blonde activated the bomb. The explosion sent four Yuki shinobi flying off of their boards and into a few of their allies. The chakra armor they all wore started to spark before engulfing a total of eight Yuki shinobi in cataclysmic explosions.

One other fox sunk its teeth into the back of a truck, causing its occupants to look back in confusion. An explosion went off, throwing the truck forward onto its topside in a flaming heap. The fires engulfed the shinobi inside, roasting them to a crisp.

The Serpent Five, in the back of one of the trucks, looked towards one of the fox bombs coming at them. Kidomaru had already prepared his bow and arrow, taking steady aim at the target. He let the arrow rip, flying through the air and punching a hole straight through the clay fox. The bomb went off prematurely, taking out two Yuki shinobi by accident. Despite the loss of a pair of allies, Kidomaru simply smiled, "Whoops."

Deidara activated the last fox, blowing up another truck of Yuki occupants before looking to the sky. The behemoth of an airship lingered above him, unnerving the artist a little bit. "Well…taking this thing out will be a hell of a challenge." Deidara looked down, seeing the airborne units coming straight up at him. "CRAP!" The artist quickly pulled up, flying faster and higher as the Yuki flyers came after him.

Koyuki was stopped by Naruto, who grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back, "STOP IT YOU IDIOTS! Don't throw your lives away!"

"Princess Koyuki, you can't help them now!"

Despite the obvious statement, Koyuki tried to break free from Naruto's grip. She didn't even do anything to rally these stupid citizens, yet they were going to throw their lives away for her. She didn't want them to die for her. Her father died for her once already, and she didn't want anyone else to throw their life away.

The citizens swung, slashed, and flung their weapons as the ground forces came sweeping by. A few Yuki shinobi were knocked off their boards with enough force to either knock them unconscious immediately, or in some cases kill them. Some citizens were cut down in the blink of an eye as shinobi zoomed by them. Mizore with at least a dozen shinobi on snowboards raced towards Naruto and Koyuki while the rest of his men fought the citizens.

Naruto readied himself against Mizore, but suddenly a figure leapt over his head. Neji landed in front of his blonde companion, with Ranmaru riding on his back. Mizore increased his speed, racing towards Neji with a scowl on his face.

Neji activated his Byakugan, focusing it solely on Mizore, "Keep an eye on the rest of them for me, okay Ranmaru?"

"You got it Neji," the purple haired boy spoke. He looked back at Naruto, "Get the princess out of harm's way! Quickly."

"Right! Take care of Neji for me Ranmaru!" The young boy smiled and nodded. Naruto took that as his sign and pulled Koyuki back towards the town. Ranmaru looked back forward, his eyes glowing an eerie red.

"The others aren't attacking," Ranmaru stated. "They're going to go after the princess while Mizore takes care of you."

"Big mistake," Neji scowled. The Hyuga shifted his bodyweight back, taking the classic stance of his clan. "I'll finish this with one strike!"

Mizore closed the distance between himself and Neji, pulling back his metal arm to crush the Akatsuki shinobi. Neji's eyes widened as he spun around and then surged all of his strength through his left arm, palm open wide. The momentum, combined with every ounce of Neji's strength went right through the chakra armor.

"NOW," Ranmaru shouted. Neji's eyes flashed again as charka surged through his arm. His Gentle Fist struck Mizore's chakra armor generator, crushing it into a thousand pieces while stopping the Yuki commander's heart.

Mizore's feet were lifted off of his board, which slid between Neji's legs. The large man was lifted off of the ground for a few moments before he fell backwards into the snow. Mizore's head turned to the side, eyes completely devoid of life.

"Thanks for the heads up," Neji said, keeping his eyes on Mizore. Ranmaru's eyes were slightly sharper than Neji's. Thanks to that, Neji's hand was able to bypass the chakra armor. Then once his hand was safely through the shield, Ranmaru was to give the word for when Neji could surge his chakra through his arm. Their plan worked splendidly, having taken out one of Doto's commanders in one strike.

"Uh…Neji-kun…" The young Hyuga looked up, noticing Mizore's reinforcements had now surrounded him and Ranmaru. "Their chakra armor is slightly weaker than Mizore's. Your Gentle Fist shouldn't have any issues punching right through it."

"Thanks again," Neji replied with a smile on his face. He took his Hyuga stance, shifting his eyes to each Yuki shinobi, "Come on, let's see what ya got."

* * *

Naruto headed towards the other side of town, away as far as possible from the conflict, with Koyuki. The princess's eyes were narrowed with disgust. "People are dying for me. They're all dying so I can be rightful ruler of this godforsaken place." Naruto turned his head, gasping softly. Koyuki clenched her fists, anger being replaced by an emotionally dead expression. "This is what you get when people have unrealistic dreams. They die unnecessarily."

"Princess, those people are fighting for a cause they believe in! They're fighting for what's right!"

"They're all idiots," Koyuki whispered. Naruto scowled furiously. He really didn't want to have to deal with this right now.

Naruto turned around sharply as he heard someone approach. A young woman wearing a cloak that covered her entire body, with light purple hair which covered her right eye appeared from the alleyway. Naruto lowered his guard, wondering who the girl was.

Izumi looked over to the young, green haired woman, "Are you Princess Koyuki?" The woman made no response, but Izumi knew it was the princess. "Please listen to me: you can't get the Land of Snow involved in this coming war against the Alliance."

"Like I have any say over that," Koyuki deadpanned followed by a dry laugh. "Doto rules this country. His will is what goes."

"Not if we can overthrow him and get you in charge princess," Naruto snapped. The Jinchuriki turned to the mysterious woman, "And who the hell are you anyway?"

"The student of the Honored Siblings," a voice rang out. Naruto and Izumi snapped their heads up while Koyuki remained indifferent.

The two shinobi soon realized that they were completely and utterly surrounded by Yuki and Alliance shinobi. Naruto's eyes met one certain kunoichi's, causing confusion and pain to wash over his face. Sakura stared back at Naruto. She wasn't angry like last time, or even upset. In her mind, all she wanted to do was talk to him.

Fubuki, another Yuki commander, stood next to Kurotsuchi and Suzumebachi, "So, she's the Princess of Puppets that the Land of Wind put a high bounty on?"

"That's her," Kurotsuchi murmured lowly.

"Along with Konoha's Jinchuriki," Sakura whispered softly.

"I'm not going down without a fight," Naruto exclaimed. "I'll fight every last one of you Yuki bastards to keep the princess-," Naruto was cut off when Dosu appeared in front of him in a flash.

The masked Chunin swung his arm forward. Naruto instinctively jerked his head back as Dosu's fist traveled by his face. The blonde registered what had happened just before Dosu flicked his Melody Arm. Naruto's eyes rolled up into the back of his head before he slumped over to the side, unconscious.

Koyuki turned her head as her bodyguard fell to the side, "N-Naruto!" Two Yuki shinobi appeared on either side of the princess and restrained her.

Izumi's eyes narrowed before she readied herself against her opponents. Fubuki grinned before jumping down from the roof in front of Izumi, "You wanted an audience with Lord Doto didn't you?" Izumi's guard was still up, but her eyes softened a bit. "Come along peacefully, and you can gain your audience with Lord Doto."

"You expect me to believe that you just won't turn me in to the Alliance afterwards?"

"Oh you can bet on that," Fubuki stated with a sneer. "But who knows…" The Yuki commander took a step closer, leaning towards the puppet user and whispering, "You might actually convince Lord Doto to stay out of the war…" Izumi's eyes flickered suddenly. The young puppet user looked around carefully. She knew one way or the other she was going to be taken prisoner. It might as well be on her terms.

Izumi lowered her arms to her side and nodded. Fubuki smiled before a Yuki shinobi came behind the puppet user and cuffed her hands behind her back. Turning to her troops and the Alliance shinobi, Fubuki declare, "We're moving out." With that, the squad moved out with their prisoners in tow towards the nearest transport truck to retreat from the battle.

* * *

**Hey guys, sorry about the long wait for the chapter. Fan-fiction wasn't working on my home computer, so I'm using my friend's laptop to update instead. Hope you guys enjoyed it.**


	31. Fate of the Land of Snow

Nadare slid back, smirking before leaping into the air. The pack on his back opened up, revealing a pair of purple wings. The Yuki commander huffed in amusement before turning around and flying off towards the rest of the forces that were retreating.

Konan scowled just as Itachi and Hana came to back her up against the Yuki shinobi. Itachi's looked around, seeing all of the enemy forces retreating from the battle. "What's going on? They have us outnumbered, so why are they retreating?"

"I don't like it," Hana murmured.

"I want a pursuit team formed on the double," Konan ordered Itachi. He quickly nodded and ran off. "Tell Jiraiya to round up everyone and get a head count to see if anyone is missing." Hana bowed her head and moved to find the Sannin. Konan pressed against her earpiece, "Deidara! What's going on?"

_"They got Naruto and Koyuki!"_ Dread washed over Konan. _"I'm following after them! If I find Naruto or the princess I'll save them!"_

"Negative Deidara! Follow them, but stay out of sight! I can't risk losing you too! We're getting a pursuit team together quickly and then we'll follow after you."

_"Roger ma'am. Over and out."_

Konan scowled, turning around to help Itachi put the pursuit team together. Everything that could have gone wrong just had. The princess being kidnapped was bad enough for the Land of Snow, but Naruto being captured was bad for the overall well being of the world. Heavens only knew what Danzo would be capable of if he managed to get Naruto on his side.

She wasn't going to let that happen no matter what.

* * *

Doto Kazahana looked out onto his land, surrounded by his army of shinobi as they all retreated from the pointless battle. He had the princess, and the Hex Crystal. Victory was assured for the daimyo. All that was left to tend to were the Alliance mongrels in his country. Once he finished them, and joined with the Land of Sky, their allegiance would destroy the Five Great Shinobi Nations.

The door to his chambers opened. Doto turned his head, seeing a group of his shinobi enter with the three captives from the battle: the princess, Konoha's Jinchuriki, and a rogue shinobi from the Land of Wind. Doto turned to the prisoners, sneering deviously at them.

"Princess Koyuki. It's been some time." His niece simply glared daggers at him. Doto laughed before looking to the other two prisoners. "Why are they here? This is currently a family matter."

"I promised the little puppet girl here a chance to…talk you out of joining the coming war," Fubuki said, a sly smile crossing her lips.

"Oh, did you now?" Doto almost broke out in laughter at the thought. "I'll humor her. Speak little girl."

Izumi stepped forward, staring Doto in the eye. Slowly, she fell to her knees and bowed her head. "Please Lord Doto. Your country must stay out of the coming war. If you get involved, it will only mean death for your people. Families will be torn apart, and you'll have the blood of thousands on your hands. Innocents could be caught in the crossfire, or at the very least be affected by those who die in battle. Please Lord Doto…" Izumi's eyes softened as she looked at the ground. She wouldn't let any of them see her pained expression. "As an orphan of war…please stay out of this war."

Silence lingered in the room. Most of the Yuki shinobi looked down at Izumi with pity. They knew what the likely answer from their master would be. Koyuki simply looked off into space, ignoring everything going on around her. Naruto's eyes were full of sympathy as he looked down at Izumi. Like her, he was an orphan too.

"Is that all?" Izumi snapped her head up in disbelief. Naruto snapped his head, scowling in rage at Doto. The daimyo simply smiled sadistically. "I know the price of war little fool. I'm more than willing to pay that price after I take control of this world. Nothing will be able to stop me, not even the Alliance once my plans come to fruition."

"You can't!" Izumi quickly rose to her feet, causing the nearby shinobi to tense up, ready to pounce. "What good will taking over the world do you!"

"Power is the only absolute in this world," Doto replied, almost immediately. "What other purpose is there besides to use that power to rule all that you can?"

"How about to stabilize peace," Naruto roared. Doto's smile vanished, glaring at the noisy blonde in back. "What do you get from oppressing the weak? Some personal sense of accomplishment? If you're stronger than someone that makes _you_ feel better? It's scum like you that makes me sick!"

"Take this annoying fool away. And put a device on him to suppress his chakra. A Jinchuriki such as this one would undoubtedly have enormous amounts of chakra stored up." The shinobi dragged the kicking and screaming Naruto out of the presence of their master. Outside, it took nearly a dozen of them to hold the blonde down and finally get the device on.

"Please Lord Doto," Izumi murmured, feeling her attempts for peace talks had gotten shot down thanks to the blonde. "Don't get involved in the war."

"Take her out of here as well." Izumi's eyes hardened in frustration. She had failed. Again.

Fubuki lifted the puppet user onto her feet and dragged her out of the room. Koyuki was left alone with her uncle. The princess turned her hardened eyes to her uncle.

* * *

The Alliance shinobi lounged around in one of the open rooms in Doto's airship. The Serpent Five were chattering noisily, celebrating at the fact they captured the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, and captured a high level criminal from the Land of Wind in one fell swoop. And with princess Koyuki handed over to Doto, the Land of Snow's allegiance to the Alliance was assured.

The three siblings from the Kamizuru Clan were also rejoicing. After such a successful mission like this, they would undoubtedly be brought back into their village welcomingly for aiding in such a victory for the Alliance.

Hinata's team was chatting it up with Shikamaru's team, telling them that the latter team would likely get promoted for such a successful mission. Bringing back the village's long lost Jinchuriki was a major victory for the Alliance, and everyone was likely to be rewarded.

The only one who wasn't celebrating was Sakura. She had stayed silent, wondering what Doto and his men had done with Naruto. All she wanted was to talk to the boy for a few minutes, to get everything off her chest and out in the open.

Kurotsuchi sat on a crate next to her pink haired friend, noticing the troubled look she had. For once, Kurotsuchi didn't know what to say. Honestly, what could she say at a time like this?

On the crates above the two shinobi, Dosu and Zaku sat, looking out at the moving Yuki shinobi. Zaku gently nudged Dosu and pointed out on the other side of the room. The two laid their eyes on a squad of Yuki shinobi moving Naruto towards the prison on the massive airship. The teammates jumped down, landing on either side of Sakura and Kurotsuchi.

Wordlessly, Zaku grabbed Sakura's arm and pulled her off the crate, "Wh-what the?" Kurotsuchi narrowed her eyes skeptically before she looked ahead to where they were heading. A sly grin crossed the kunoichi's face before she leaned back on the crate.

"Go get em guys," Kurotsuchi whispered encouragingly.

* * *

Sakura almost instantly noticed where they were heading. She swallowed the nervous lump in her throat before wrenching her arm out of Zaku's grip. The team of three moved towards the Yuki squad escorting Naruto.

"Hey," Dosu called out. The shinobi turned their heads to the three Chunin, "We'll take it from here." The Yuki squad all looked at each other questioningly before turning back to the young ninjas.

"He's our village's Jinchuriki," Zaku stated, "Plus Dosu was the one who took him out to begin with. We'll handle it." The Yuki commander shrugged before shoving Naruto towards the Konoha shinobi. Zaku and Dosu caught the blonde with one arm each. Naruto grunted softly before his eyes met Sakura's. The two stared at each other in brief silence before Zaku and Dosu straightened the blonde back onto his feet. "Come on big guy."

"I figure we got a couple of minutes before Kimimaro or Sasuke figure out what we've done," Dosu added as he started moving Naruto quickly towards the prison. "You two so need to talk."

Naruto felt like asking what the hell was happening, but he could piece it together himself pretty well. He looked back over his shoulder at Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi stared back at him. Naruto lowered his eyes and sighed through his nose before turning back forward.

* * *

Konan led the pursuit team quickly through the snow. The team was moving so quickly it almost looked as if they were kicking up a small blizzard behind them. On the team were Itachi, Haku, Hanabi, two other shinobi, and Yahiko's servant boy Kiriya. Konan still didn't know how to feel about bringing Kiriya on her pursuit team, but she didn't have time to question it now.

The snow was interfering with the radio transmissions, so she lost contact with Deidara quite some time ago. It would take a hell of a lot to catch up with Deidara, let alone Doto's fleet. Her team moved at top speeds through the snow. Everyone knew what was at stake, and what it would mean if Naruto was sent to Konoha.

Not only that, but for Konan it was personal.

"_Hello…? This is Dei…Can anyone read m…over?"_

Konan pressed her fingers against her radio, not slowing down in the slightest, "Repeat, Deidara is that you?"

"_Lady Konan?"_ The transmission was full of nothing but static. Konan pushed down harder on her earpiece, _"I'm still tailing Doto's fle—t. They're heading towards some type of…"_

"Repeat Deidara, some type of what?"

"_I said: some type of monument. I don't know what it is, but it looks kind of like a temple, or shrine or something. Whatever it is, Doto is heading towards it, and fast."_

"Roger, thanks for the information Deidara!" Konan removed her finger and turned to the two nameless shinobi in her command. "Do either of you have a way to contact Jiraiya and Sandayu's group?"

"I can summon hawks milady," one of the shinobi said.

"Send a message back to the main group. Tell them Doto is heading towards some type of monument. I'm willing to bet that Sandayu will know what it is and can head there immediately." The shinobi nodded and stopped, along with his partner. He summoned a hawk as the second shinobi started writing the message. "Catch up with us as soon as possible!"

"Yes ma'am," the two shinobi called out.

A giant structure of some sort in the Land of Snow. Akatsuki's intel hadn't said anything about that, but Konan knew that it couldn't be good, especially if Doto was heading towards it after capturing the princess, and acquiring the Hex Crystal.

"Pick up the pace men," Konan shouted before racing past her shinobi. The four shinobi all started moving faster to catch up with their blue haired commander.

* * *

Dosu and Zaku were finishing up chaining Naruto in his jail cell. The blonde's arms were bound together above his head, while his feet were shackled together, dangling from above the ground. "Sorry about this Naruto," Zaku apologized.

"We didn't set up this funky prison, we're just using it," Dosu added, pulling on the chains to make sure they were secure. The masked Chunin turned around to his female teammate. "We'll watch the entrance to make sure nobody interrupts. Take all the time you need, okay Sakura?"

The pink haired kunoichi nodded, smiling wearily at her teammates, "Thank you guys." Zaku and Dosu nodded before walking out of Naruto's jail cell.

Sakura sighed softly before stepping forward. She looked up at Naruto, finding it a bit awkward to talk in the position the Jinchuriki was in. Naruto shifted a bit nervously in his bonds, looking away from Sakura. The kunoichi couldn't help but glance nervously at the chakra restraining device strapped to Naruto's gut.

"Um…I get the feeling you're going to start wailing on me aren't you…?" Sakura couldn't help but smile. The kunoichi stopped for a moment, raising her hand up to lightly touch the corner of her mouth. Was she genuinely smiling? She hadn't smiled happily in a long time.

"No, I'm not." Naruto slowly looked back to Sakura, looking into her emerald eyes. "I just want to talk Naruto."

"What prompted this? Last time we met you were…well angry with me." Sakura looked to the side, holding her right arm nervously. They both knew that was a gross understatement of the situation. "Never mind," Naruto whispered. He didn't want to ruin his chance to finally get to talk with Sakura. "I'll let you talk first Sakura-chan."

Emerald eyes moved back to the blonde, and a smile crept onto Sakura's face, "Thank you Naruto." A pause and silence lingered in the air. This was all more awkward than Sakura could have imagined. She didn't know where to start with all of her feelings. She was still a freaking mess. "Be honest when I ask you this Naruto…" The blonde nodded silently. Sakura rubbed her arm in growing anxiety before sighing. She mustered up the courage and looked Naruto dead in the eyes, "Do you still have feelings for me, or are you just lying to try and get me to switch sides?"

"What?"

"Answer the question please," Sakura snapped.

"Of course I like you Sakura!" Naruto groaned, lowering his head before quickly looking back into Sakura's eyes. "I honestly haven't been able to get you out of my head since the last time we met. And it's…" The blonde sighed, trying to think of how to word his feelings. "It's…affected me a bit. Not exactly in a good way either. I haven't been the same since I left Konoha…I don't know how exactly to explain it I guess…" Sakura nodded wordlessly as she listened. She was relieved to know that she wasn't the only one affected by their feelings. "Do you have any idea how many times I've wondered if we could make this work…? A lot. Every time I think about it, a part of me says I should just give up on you Sakura. But…" Naruto paused, lowering his eyes to the ground.

As the silence continued, Sakura pressed on, "But what?"

Naruto closed his eyes, speaking softly, "Every time I even consider giving up on you…throwing away my feelings for you Sakura…it breaks my heart." Sakura's eyes widened as she gasped softly. How much did this boy actually care for her? Naruto opened his eyes, staring at the floor as he continued, "My loyalty to Akatsuki is absolute…but so are my feelings for you too. I know they conflict with each other, and there's no chance of making them both work but I…" Naruto's jaw tensed as he choked on his emotions. Sakura put her hand over her chest as her own heart began to sink a bit. How the hell had she affected this boy so much? "I can't throw either of them away Sakura. Akatsuki…they raised me. They're my family. They've all done so much for me, and I can't turn my back on them. But…when I think of you…I'm really happy."

Naruto laughed softly, as if the idea sounded ridiculous even to him. Sakura could hardly believe what she was hearing. Naruto loved her. He didn't say the actual words, but this was one hell of a confession regardless. Did she love him too? She didn't have the time to sort out her feelings like he did apparently. She wasn't sure exactly how to feel about Naruto, except the obvious fact she had feelings for him. Were her feelings for him as intense as his for her?

Naruto continued, "I mean I'm always happy when I hang out with my friends in Akatsuki, or spending time with Jiraiya or Konan-neechan…but it's a different type of happiness when I think of you. The time we spent together Sakura, during the Chunin Exams…I don't regret it. I only regret…how things ended between us."

Sakura's eyes fell to the floor, "That makes two of us…"

"I know my apology to you in the forest was weak Sakura, but I want to tell you again." Sakura closed her eyes for a brief moment before looking back up at Naruto. His blue, sparkling eyes were filled with emotion. "I am sorry for lying to you. For leading you on and for not telling you the truth. You have every right to be angry at me and hate me forever. But I want you to know that I am sorry. With every fiber of my being I'm sorry Sakura. And-,"

"I get it," Sakura said, a small smile on her face as she raised her hand up. "You don't have to say another word knucklehead. Apology accepted." Naruto's eyes opened up in shock before he grinned brightly. This caused Sakura's smile to spread wider over her own face. She missed that stupid, goofy grin.

"I uh…guess it's your turn to get everything out there right?"

"Right," Sakura agreed with a nod. "But first…I want to tell you I'm not entirely sure how I feel about 'us' right now. I've been really busy since the Chunin Exams…and I guess I haven't really had a chance to sort everything out."

"I've been busy too," Naruto admitted as he chuckled. "But I had my big sister Konan to help me sort things out." Sakura smiled, her eyes falling to the floor. Maybe she should've been more open with her uncle. Perhaps he could've helped sort out some of her feelings. Sakura huffed softly before brushing some hair behind her ear. She was just too angry that Higure seemed to side with Naruto after he escaped from Konoha during the Chunin Exams. "Sorry Sakura, you can go ahead now."

"Its fine," Sakura replied softly. "I was just thinking to myself." She straightened her thoughts out. She went over everything Naruto just said to her, and processed it in her mind. In short: he loved her, but wasn't going to give up his allegiance to Akatsuki for reasons that Sakura understood herself.

For some reason, her own feelings seemed to become much clearer instead of becoming a murky whirlwind of wild and untamable emotions. She somehow got her emotions for the boy in front of her straightened out.

"Naruto…" The blonde straightened up at the sound of his name. Sakura looked up into Naruto's eyes, "I…I think I feel the same way about you." She knew the boy wasn't so dense that he wouldn't know what that meant. She just couldn't bring herself to say the words to him. "I care for you. A lot. And…thinking about our time together makes me happy too. And talking to you now…I know there's no difference between who you really are, and who you were at the Chunin Exams. The boy who I have feelings for isn't a lie and…and I'm glad to finally know that." Naruto smiled, happiness washing over his face. "But…" Sakura closed her eyes for what seemed to be the millionth time already. She looked back up into Naruto's eyes. "I can't leave Konoha either."

Naruto's smile turned into a half-hearted smirk, "Figured as much."

"I have friends of my own. Zaku, Dosu, Anko sensei, Kurotsuchi-chan, they're all precious to me. And I have my Uncle Higure. I couldn't bear the thought of fighting against the village he fought so many battles for and spilled so much blood for. And…my parents too…" Naruto's eyes fell to the floor, nodding gently in acknowledgment. Still, Sakura continued, "My father died to protect the village. My mother fought along with my uncle in service to the village. They died with their hearts loyal to Konoha. If I were to leave…and fight against Konoha…it would be like me spitting on their graves. I couldn't do that to them…or to my uncle."

"But Sakura, my father was a ninja in Konoha, and I'm working with Akatsuki. I know that my father wanted the world to be free of the Wrath of Fire. He fought for Konoha too, and in many cases helped the village succeed and build a higher position of power in the world."

"Then why're you fighting against what your father worked so hard for," Sakura questioned.

"Because it's what's right." Sakura blinked in surprise. She honestly wasn't expecting such an answer. "Jiraiya sensei, my father's sensei, told me that Minato Namikaze worked so hard for Konoha so he could become Hokage, and start forward on a new world for peace. He wanted to change the village from the inside, not through a bloody war. He still believed in the Will of Fire though, not Danzo's Wrath of Fire. My father, Minato Namikaze's dreams for a better, peaceful world have been passed down to me. And I'll stop at nothing to make sure that his ideal world of peace comes to fruition!"

"But you're fighting a bloody war against Konoha, which was what your father was trying to prevent." Sakura apparently struck a nerve, as Naruto fell silent. Sakura took a deep breath, gathering the courage to say something very bold on her part, "Maybe if you did come back to the village…we could try to change the village together? Just like your father tried to do."

Naruto remained silent. He hadn't thought of this before. Could he actually go to Konoha and try to change it from the inside? He could be together with Sakura-chan, and he could be happy. If he actually could change the village, he would've done what his father failed to do.

Before he could even question what would be wrong with following through with that idea, images of his friends from Akatsuki flashed through his mind. Pulling pranks and joking around with Kiba, Neji, Ino, and Tenten when they were younger, being trained by Jiraiya in the ways of chakra control, ninjutsu, and sealing techniques, spending quality time with Konan, sparring with Nagato, and many more images and memories flooded through his mind of his times with Akatsuki.

The thought of having to fight against any of them on the battlefield pained him almost as much as the thought of giving up on Sakura did. Naruto sighed heavily before looking back at Sakura.

"I'm sorry Sakura …I can't abandon Akatsuki." Sakura lowered her eyes, a smile of disappointment crossing her face. She shifted her gaze to the side before rubbing her arm again.

"It was worth a shot I guess," the kunoichi replied. Sakura looked up at Naruto, her smile vanishing in a sea of pain. "I guess there's nothing left Naruto…if neither of us will switch sides…I guess it's just best if we give up and say goodbye…"

"Sakura-,"

"Naruto," Sakura murmured, her voice breaking. Naruto's eyes softened in pain. Neither of them wanted to give up and throw away their emotions. "I know it's tough…but we have to do this. It can't work out." Sakura quickly wiped away the tears that were building in the corners of her eyes. "We can't keep deceiving ourselves like this. It's stupid to think that. W…we have to move on okay?"

"But Sakura -,"

The kunoichi quickly silenced Naruto by placing two fingers over his lips. Pained emerald eyes met pleading ocean blue orbs. Sakura leaned forward, rising up on her tip-toes. Naruto's eyes widened and his heart raced at what he thought was about to happen. Sakura removed her fingers and gently pressed her lips against Naruto's.

Naruto trembled gently, as did Sakura. The blonde slowly closed his eyes, giving into the kiss. He tried to push his head forward, more into the kiss to try and deepen it. Sakura lifted her hand up and rested it on Naruto's cheek. The kiss lasted for a few more moments before Sakura stepped back.

The kunoichi was on the verge of tears, and quickly wiped them away. "I'm sorry Naruto," Sakura whispered. "But this can't go on any further…" Before Naruto could object, Sakura turned around and closed Naruto's cell door. She stopped for a moment, giving Naruto a brief flicker of hope. Closing her eyes, a silent tear rolled down the side of Sakura's cheek, "Goodbye…"

"Sakura!" The young Chunin was already gone. Naruto felt like screaming in frustration. Instead, he simply slumped over, feeling utterly defeated. He bit his lower lip to quell his sobs. The boy whispered, barely audible to even his own ears. His words were meant for Sakura, and Sakura alone, "I love you…"

Sakura finished wiping her tears as she moved towards the exit. She heard approaching footsteps from behind, causing her to look back over her shoulder. Zaku and Dosu caught up with her, the latter placing his hand supportively on her shoulder.

"Are you okay," Dosu asked.

Sakura sniffed, wiping the last of her tears away, "You were eavesdropping?"

"Zaku's idea," Dosu snapped, pointing to his teammate.

Before Sakura could respond, the doors opened. Another squad of Yuki shinobi was bringing in Princess Koyuki and Izumi, both bound and shackled. The Konoha Chunin watched as the Yuki shinobi escorted the prisoners to their cells. Sakura and her teammates watched them for a moment before exiting the prison.

* * *

Deidara's scope zoomed in on Doto's flagship. It wouldn't be long before he finally got to the shrine/temple thing. "Damn it," Deidara murmured. "I guess I'll just have to save the freaking day. AGAIN!" Deidara's clay ride shot forward at blistering speeds. The artist prepared a few bombs in one hand while using the other to activate his radio. "This is Deidara! I'm launching an attack to slow Doto and his forces down! To anyone who can hear this: I'll most likely need backup, so hurry your asses up!"

Deidara cut transmission and put his other hand into a clay pouch. "So many pieces to use, so little clay." The artist flew higher into the air, heading towards Doto's ship. He threw a couple of clay pieces forward which emerged into a pair of birds. "Let's stir up the hive a bit shall we?" The bombs exploded against one of the main engines, causing the whole airship to shake violently.

Inside of the colossal airship, almost everyone was shaken off of their feet. Kidomaru immediately moved outside of the airship, propping himself between a few pipes. The spider ninja started forming a bow and arrow to use as Deidara came flying by.

Kidomaru quickly aimed and fired before Deidara flew out of his line of sight. The rogue bomber managed to spin his bird around, narrowly avoiding the arrow. Kidomaru scowled, forming another arrow out of his mouth before Deidara flew out of his range of fire.

"Well," Deidara murmured to himself, "This should be a bigger pain in the ass than I thought." The artist rolled his eyes before preparing another bomb. "Then again, when aren't things more difficult than originally intended? HN!"

* * *

Sakura and her team rushed out of the prison, seeing Yuki shinobi running about, mobilizing for battle. Tayuya landed in front of the newly promoted Chunin in a blur, her eyes hardened over.

"What's going on," Dosu asked.

"Get ready to fight," Tayuya ordered. Without another word, the redhead sprung off into the crowd. The trio swiftly rushed towards the outer hull of Doto's ship to combat whatever threat was outside.

* * *

Konan's eyes lit up as she heard the dull sounds of distant explosions. They were closing in fast. "I'm going on ahead! Itachi, you're in charge of the squad!"

"Yes ma'am!" Paper flew out from Konan's cloak, swarming around her to form a pair of wings on her back. With a powerful flap, the blue haired kunoichi took flight. She wasted no time and shot through the mini-blizzard. _'Hang on Naruto…I'm coming.'_

* * *

Deidara flew just out of range for the Yuki's crank turrets to reach them. He still kept an eye on the spider shinobi who fired arrows at him. Those projectiles were dangerous, and could easily punch a hole through the artist's chest.

"This is ridiculous! It's like I'm fighting the entire country by myself!" Deidara reached into his clay pouch, scrounging the last little bit of clay he had left. _'I'm running low. I need to make this next piece count…'_ Deidara huffed, pressing on his earpiece radio, "Konan! Are you close, repeat, please tell me you're close!"

"_I'm moving in with the pursuit squad Deidara! What is it?"_

"I've only got enough clay for one last masterpiece. It'll do the job, but Naruto and the princess are still in Doto's airship. I can distract them, and I have a few smaller pieces at the ready to get their attention. I need you to sneak in and break Naruto and the princess out of there!"

"_Understood. Consider it done. And Deidara?"_

The artist groaned, pushing his fingers back against his earpiece, "What?"

"_Be careful."_

Deidara rolled his eyes, "With these odds? Easier said than done."

* * *

The few other prisoners in the airship murmured amongst one another, looking from each other to the princess squatting in her cell across from the Jinchuriki's. Izumi was in the cell next to Koyuki's, her hands shackled to her ankles to prevent her from using any chakra strings effectively.

Naruto hung loosely by his wrists, looking at the ground with pain and loss in his eyes. He didn't know what to do at this point. Sakura was right, it would be pointless, and stupid to keep hoping that they'd be together. Wouldn't it?

"Hey," one prisoner called out, "Are you really Princess Koyuki? Doto's niece, and rightful heir to the Land of Snow?" Koyuki said nothing, staring at the wall in front of her. She was the only prisoner who wasn't restrained in some way. What was the point?

"I'm telling you she's the princess," another prisoner snapped. "There's no mistaking it!"

"Like it'll make a difference. She's in here like the rest of us. Plus look at her! She's given up like the rest of you should!"

One prisoner turned his head to the sound of rustling chains, seeing Izumi moving her hands and feet while observing her bonds curiously. "Oh, we got a live one!"

"Give it up honey," the prisoner above Izumi called out. "Even if you broke out of the chains each cell is fitting with a tag that'll shock every fiber of your being. The only way to safely remove them is by wearing chakra armor."

"I have to get out of here," Izumi said, not taking her eyes off the chains in front of her. "I still have to try to stop Doto from getting involved in the coming war."

"Just give it up." All eyes turned to the prisoner princess. Koyuki hadn't taken her eyes off of the wall across from her. "Doto isn't going to listen to you. He didn't listen to you before and he won't listen to you now."

"I have to try." Izumi jerked her hands back, trying to break her restraints only to fail.

"What's the point of trying if you know there _is_ no point," Koyuki asked, her tone dead of any emotion. "My father thought he could change things and look what happened to him." Izumi shifted her eyes over in the direction of Koyuki's prison cell. "Look what happened to all of us. We're all here because we thought we could do the impossible. We thought we could change the way things were." Naruto's eyes slowly moved up to the princess, the faintest flicker of life crossing his blue orbs. "What's the point?"

"The point is for peace," Izumi harshly snapped. "I would gladly give my life if it meant I could keep this country out of the war. If the Land of Snow doesn't get involved in this next world war, then it will save thousands of lives!" Naruto's eyes traveled over to Izumi's direction. The puppet user fumbled with her bonds even more, a look of frustration crossing her face.

"It's pointless. All you can do in the end is give up…"

A flare went off on Naruto's face. His body tensed up a bit, straightening his body out as he glared at the princess.

"I bet it's easier isn't it…?" The prisoners, Izumi included, looked over in Naruto's direction. Koyuki was the only one who didn't turn her head to the the blonde directly across from her. "Once you've given up?" Naruto's eyes dropped to the floor before he closed his eyelids. "No one ever cared about me…and I just tried to blow it off ya know?" Koyuki moved her eyes over towards Naruto, deciding to humor him. Naruto's face twisted from pain of his early life. So many people in Akatsuki, except the handful of friends he had now hated him so much back then. Naruto's voice and head dropped, "I use to think there was no place in this world for me…

"But…" Naruto pulled against his restraints, causing the device strapped to his stomach to go off. Naruto cried out in pain as an electrical surge coursed through his body. Koyuki, Izumi, and half of the prisoners gasped softly, confused and bewildered by the Jinchuriki's action. "But I…" Images of Jiraiya, Konan, Nagato, Tsunade, Kiba, Neji, Haku, Gaara, Hana, and so many more went through his mind, "Found friends!" Naruto winced through the pain, keeping both eyes focused on Koyuki who stared back at him in confused shock. Naruto's emotions built up within his chest, giving him strength to tough out the pain pumping through every fiber of his body.

"I kept at it and NEVER gave up! And good things happened!" The surges from the device began to become more powerful, building in intensity to match Naruto's chakra. The Jinchuriki closed his eyes, the pain overwhelming his senses. Koyuki simply stared in awe at Naruto's determination. She was at a complete loss for words. The other prisoners simply stared, hearing the electrical surges along with Naruto's words and cries of agony. "When you give up…your dreams and everything else…" Naruto balled his fists up, building more charka in his body. The device's electrical surge cried out in power. Naruto simply yelped in pain, clenching his jaw tightly to keep from screaming. "They're GONE!"

Naruto pulled against his bonds, determined to overpower the stupid machine strapped to his gut. The prisoners all leaned forward, murmuring and gasping as Naruto fought his bindings. Izumi simply stopped and stared, completely moved by the young child in front of her, so determined and so full of heart.

Koyuki sat up and ran to the bars of her prisoner, "Stop it!" Naruto ignored her, his body twitching as electricity coursed through it.

The blonde's eyes bulged as he pulled harder and harder, fighting against the machine that caused every inch of his body to hurt. Izumi shifted in Naruto's direction. She wanted to say something, but she didn't even know the boy. Naruto pulled harder, his lower body flopping around wildly.

"Your father…" Naruto panted, his body now smoking from the device shocking him constantly. "Sandayu…Akatsuki…" Koyuki watched in awe, praying that Naruto would simply give up before he killed himself. "I'm gonna show you…" Naruto pulled himself up by his wrists, his body trembling in pain. "That they weren't…" The blonde groaned in pain. He could feel his chains about to finally break. He just needed one final push. An image of him kissing Sakura appeared in his mind. Naruto's eyes snapped open as his muscles exploded with chakra, "WRONG!"

With a mighty cry, Naruto busted his shackles off. The device on his stomach was overloaded, and broke before he even hit the ground. Everyone was in stunned silence, either watching or listening for Naruto. There wasn't a single heart that wasn't moved in the prison.

Koyuki gasped as the blonde began to stir. Naruto pushed himself up, his body smoking and his face twisted in pain as he panted heavily.

"Alright," one prisoner with a visual shouted. Koyuki's head snapped up to the other jail cells as every last prisoner cheered.

The Jinchuriki chuckled weakly in embarrassment, his arms shaking as he propped himself up. "Now we…just gotta get you out…" Naruto crawled across the floor, reaching for the bars.

"Wait Naruto!" All heads turned up, seeing a figure descend from above. Paper started parting outward as a young woman landed softly in front of Naruto's cell.

"K-Konan-neechan?" The blue haired woman knelt down, smiling lovingly at Naruto.

"That was some speech you gave." Naruto chuckled in embarrassment as Konan stood up.

The blue haired woman stared at the tag for a moment before holding her hand out. A sheet of paper wrapped itself around the tag. Konan grabbed the paper and ripped it off of Naruto's lock. The door lazily swung open and Konan stepped inside, helping Naruto to his feet.

"Hey, you're gonna get us out too right," one prisoner asked. Konan looked up at the prisoner and smiled.

"You bet I am. We're all getting out of here." The prisoners cheered in celebration as Konan sent a stream of papers flying out to cover all of the electrical tags. The prisoners ripped theirs off and stepped out of their cells.

Naruto opened Koyuki's jail cell, grinning at the princess as she approached. Koyuki looked back at the hardheaded blonde and smiled warmly at him.

Konan opened Izumi's jail cell and knelt down in front of the puppet user, "Are you going to help us?"

"I can't help terrorists," Izumi replied. "I came here to keep Doto Kazahana and the Land of Snow out of the coming war."

"That's what Akatsuki is striving for too." Izumi gasped softly to this. Konan formed a blade of papers around her hand and swiped once, breaking the solid steel that kept Izumi bound. "If Koyuki becomes ruler of this land, she'll keep it out of the war. Doto wants to join the Alliance, or maybe go against them." Konan looked up into Izumi's blue eyes, "You don't have to join Akatsuki. But I want to make sure in this case you're going to help us, and not be a liability."

The puppet user rubbed her wrists gently and looked up at Konan before nodding, "If that's the case you can count on me." Konan smiled then swiftly got up along with Izumi.

"Everyone follow me! We're leaving this ship!"

"Not so fast." All heads looked up just as a small army of Yuki shinobi surrounded the prisoners and shinobi. At the highest point of the prison, standing on the railing above was Doto Kazahana with Fubuki and Nadare on either side of him. On the bridge below them were four of the Serpent Five, Kurostuchi's team, Sasuke's team, Shikamaru's team, and Sakura's team. "Did you think me an idiot? Thanks to the information provided by the ninja from Iwagakure, I know what Deidara's abilities entail. It was clear he was meant to distract us."

"He'll do more than that Doto," Konan snapped.

"What're you talking about?"

"If I give the order, Deidara blows up this whole ship with everyone inside of it." Doto's confident smile snapped into a harsh frown. Konan pressed her fingers up to the radio in her ear. "Should I give the order?"

"You blow us up, the Land of Snow falls into chaos. It would become ripe for the picking of either the Alliance or this newly formed Union. Not only that, but you lose Akatsuki's little Jinchuriki."

"I'm more than willing to give up my life," Naruto replied, his eyes fixated on Doto. The daimyo glared at the blonde before turning to the blue haired woman.

"You wouldn't dare take all of our lives." Konan's features softened as she shrugged.

"No, I just had to distract you long enough." The roof above exploded, causing debris to fall down.

Itachi flew in first, shooting a fireball in front of him as he fell. He burned one of the bridges holding up a group of Yuki shinobi, causing them to plummet down to the darkness below. Haku dove in, slashing one man across the chest, causing him to fall over the railing. More Yuki shinobi rushed him just as Hanabi landed behind Haku. The young Hyuga flowed around the enemy's strikes, either pushing, guiding, or hitting them off the bridge. Kiriya fell in last, wielding a pair of hook blades. He swung outward, beheading two Yuki shinobi in a flash. He looked over at his nearby opponents, smiling casually at them.

Doto scowled, throwing his hand out, signaling his men to attack. The prisoners immediately rioted, eager to lash out against their captors. Naruto moved to join the fray, but Konan stopped him. An explosion came through the wall, throwing a few Yuki shinobi off the walkways. Deidara flew in on his clay bird, swooping down towards Konan and the others.

"Get them on now!" Naruto opened his mouth to ask what was happening, but was thrown onto Deidara's ride by Konan.

"You're next princess," Konan ordered. Koyuki nodded and stepped onboard Deidara's clay bird.

"Mind if I go with them," Izumi questioned. "If Koyuki is this land's chance for neutrality I'd like to make sure she's safe." Konan smiled and nodded once. Deidara looked around at the chaos, making sure nobody got too close. Izumi stepped onto Deidara's clay bird.

"You're good," Konan snapped, "Go!"

Without a word, Deidara shot off into the distance, back outside of the ship.

Doto scowled furiously, "Fubuki, Nadare, STOP THEM!"

The two Yuki commanders immediately moved towards the hole Deidara flew out of. Haku quickly formed an ice mirror over the hole, stopping the commanders in their tracks. Nadare and Fubuki looked over to each other in confusion before an image of Haku appeared in the mirror before them.

"Sorry, but I can't let you through." Haku's image vanished, appearing behind the two commanders. The core of the chakra armor sparked from the needles now stuck into them.

"Impossible," Fubuki murmured in shock.

"Even if your chakra armor prevents ninjutsu or genjutsu from hurting you," Haku began.

Hanabi flashed in front of Fubuki. The pink haired kunoichi scowled, lifting her hand up to thrust it back down at the little girl. Hanabi ducked under the strike and threw her open palm forward, striking Fubuki in the chest with her Gentle Fist. Fubuki's eyes widened in shock as her heart all but exploded in her chest. The commander fell over to the side limply and lifelessly.

"A true ninja always has taijutsu," Hanabi finished.

"Isn't that so true little sister?" Hanabi's eyes flashed in shock before she turned around to see Hinata standing behind her. The older sister threw her strike forward, narrowly missing as Hanabi dodged.

Haku shot forward, pulling his arms across his face. Hinata looked up, raising her arms up in defense to block Haku. The ice user struck against the Hyuga heiress with enough force to echo throughout the prison, and push the latter a few feet back, skidding across the ground.

Nadare moved to strike Haku while he was distracted, but a swarm of papers flew up in front of him. Nadare scowled in frustration, "You think this will stop me? I can see miles through a blizzard!"

"Oh really now?" Nadare spun around, swinging his arm through a swarm of papers. Soon, the papers started to stick around the commander's body, encasing him completely, and preventing him from moving even a finger.

Konan walked through the papers, which seemed to part around her. She held her hand out, and the papers formed a lance in her hands. "Die." Konan stabbed the paper lance forward, stabbing it directly through Nadare's chest. Red started racing out from the lance, coating the white paper in blood.

Doto's eyes nearly shot out of his head in fury. His last two commanders were taken down in an instant before his very eyes, and the princess was gone. The daimyo huffed, slowly undoing his robes and let them fall to the ground. Beneath his robes, the man wore a black version of the basic chakra armor. A pair of wings snapped out from the pack on the armor and the daimyo took to the skies, exploding through the roof of his airship.

Sakura punched one prisoner off the side of the railing while Dosu and Zaku where at her back. Kimimaro landed in front of the team, glaring at them with an immense hatred built up in his eyes. "You three, chase after Doto." The three Chunin turned to their leader with a befuddled look on their faces. "He's going after the princess, who's being escorted by the Jinchuriki. You three are going to aid him, plus you can still capture the Jinchuriki for Lord Danzo."

"No backup for us," Zaku asked, "Really?" Kimimaro glared at Zaku, his anger building.

"Go, now!" The three Chunin quickly made for the roof as Kimimaro watched them.

"Oh dear…" Kimimaro slowly turned his head, looking back at the sword wielding Akatsuki member. "That was Sakura Haruno wasn't it? Now she got away…" Kimimaro spun around one bone sword skillfully before pointing it at Kiriya. The Akatsuki swordsmen laughed light-heartedly, twirling his hook-swords around in his hands, "You want to get in my way? My mission isn't to kill you, but I'd be more than willing to cut you up."

Kimimaro huffed before rushing forward. Kiriya's eyes barely opened into two slits, glittering with murderous intent as he shot forward as well. The two clashed swords against one another's in a blinding display of skill.

* * *

Deidara, Naruto, Koyuki, and Izumi all looked down as the deck of Doto's airship was cleared, a few patches of fire scattered about from where Deidara bombed it earlier. Koyuki's eyes slowly drifted from the airship to the horizon, gasping softly in shock. Naruto looked over at the princess and then what she was staring at. His eyes widened a bit at what he saw too.

A giant shrine with several colossal pillars jutting out of the ground. In the middle of all the pillars was a strange, small bowl that was covered with snow. One could hardly tell there was a dip in the ground without looking closely.

"What is that place," Naruto asked, looking back at Koyuki.

"That's…what my father was trying to build before he died." Izumi looked over at Koyuki, as did Deidara. "I…I don't know what it is, or what it does but-," Deidara looked up as a shadow covered the lot of them.

"LOOK OUT!" Everyone turned around, just as someone crashed into Deidara. Doto floated in the air, his artificial wings flapping to keep himself suspended as he held Deidara by the throat.

"Deidara!"

"Any last words," Doto asked, tightening his grip on Deidara's neck.

The artist slowly raised his fingers up, a smirk forming across his lips, "Art…is an explosion…" A sharp hiss escaped the artist's lips. A massive explosion went off, destroying a large section of Doto's airship. The daimyo gasped as he looked over to the fiery, crashing ship.

"You DARE!" Deidara chuckled before Doto slammed a powerful punch into his face. The blonde fell to the ground, slowly drifting into unconsciousness. Doto spat down in the artist's direction before flying off after Koyuki.

'_Naruto…'_ Deidara's eye slowly drooped as he looked off at his clay bird. _'Kick his ass…'_

* * *

Naruto, Izumi, and Koyuki landed in front of a small shrine before the massive pillars. The princess looked out at her father's legacy with a slight awe. What the construct did, or was supposed to do was a mystery, even to Koyuki.

"What do I do," the princess whispered to herself.

"Whatever it is, do it fast." Koyuki turned around as Izumi spoke. The two shinobi had their backs turned to the princess, glaring in the distances as Doto landed across from them.

Doto smiled as his eyes narrowed in on his niece. Koyuki looked back, terrified at her uncle's cold stare. Izumi and Naruto took a stance against Doto, causing the daimyo's smile to press into a hard, flat line.

"I'll handle him," Izumi said. Naruto blinked in shock, shifting his eyes over to the puppet user. "Protect Princess Koyuki." Before Naruto could protest, Izumi rocketed forward.

Doto's smile returned as he straightened his back. Izumi unraveled a scroll from her pouch and drew blood from her thumb. She ran her blood over two symbols in her scroll and hurled it forward. As the scroll hit the ground, a cloud of smoke emerged. Izumi shot into the cloud of smoke and out of the other end with two puppets behind her. One puppet wore a black coat with golden trim around the collar, and the second puppet wore a yellow colored cloak with black trim. Izumi formed a hand sign as she continued towards Doto. The gold trim puppet opened its mouth, a pipe sticking out as it did. A powerful stream of fire shot out, melting the ice and snow around it without having to touch the freezing elements.

Doto's eyes narrowed as he was consumed in the scorching flames. Izumi slid to a stop, performing another hand seal. The second puppet extended its arms, revealing a pipe extending out of each hand. The two pipes shot out powerful streams of wind which merged with the first puppet's fire, creating a blazing inferno.

Suddenly, a stream of black chakra shot through the fire. Izumi narrowed her eyes, parting her puppets as the black chakra dragon went straight for her. The puppeteer kept her eyes focused on the dragon which was moving in a straight line. Swiftly, Izumi hunkered down towards the frozen ground as the ice dragon went right over her head. The flames parted, revealing an unharmed Doto Kazahana. A few patches of fire kindled around the daimyo before he stepped forward.

'_That chakra armor is powerful…but nothing is unbreakable. Even my chakra absorbing puppet Lady Chiyo made me has a limit. This chakra armor can't be much different.'_ Izumi swung her arms around, drawing her puppets closer towards herself for defense. Doto simply smirked as he continued at his own pace towards the puppeteer. _'Perhaps I can overload it if I hit him with a concentrated flow of chakra.'_ Izumi released all but one chakra string from the puppet wearing the black cloak and pulled her summoning scroll back.

Doto stopped, narrowing his eyes a bit as he wondered what the young woman was up to.

With the scroll at her feet, Izumi performed a single hand sign. Her puppet slouched over lifelessly before being sucked back into the scroll. She quickly put the scroll back in her pouch and started running at Doto.

The daimyo huffed, grinning as he lifted his head up to look down at his opponent, "A puppet user fighting without her puppets? What game are you playing?" Izumi continued forward, running at a rather pathetic speed.

Naruto scowled, feeling the urge to yell at the puppet user, or jump in. The only thing preventing him to do the latter was the fact he needed to guard the princess no matter what.

Doto chuckled in disbelief that Izumi insisted to fight without puppets.

The young woman started to pick up pace, but still at a traceable speed. Izumi then sent a burst of chakra through her body, shocking her nervous system into overdrive. The next second, Izumi vanished, leaving nothing behind her except kicked up snow.

Doto, Naruto, and Koyuki all gasped in shock as Izumi vanished. The daimyo looked around, taking a hesitant step back as he tried to search for his opponent. Izumi appeared behind Doto, in midair with her leg pulled back. With a cry, Izumi shot her leg around, nailing Doto in the side of the head with enough force to send the large man flying. As the puppeteer landed Doto went sailing through the air and crashed through a small chunk of ice sticking out of the ground, reducing it to tiny shards that rained upon the ground. When impacting the ground, Doto created a giant crater of snow, his head deep in the freezing element.

Izumi straightened her back, pulling out her summoning scroll, _'He's vulnerable to taijutsu. I know just the puppet for him.'_ Doto jerked his head out of the snow, scowling furiously as a trail of blood went down from his hairline to his lower jaw. Izumi's eyes hardened as she watched her opponent stand and face her. The puppeteer ran her bloody thumb across a symbol in her scroll, summoning another puppet in a cloud of erupted smoke.

"No more!" Doto formed a series of hand seals, "Black Dragon Blizzard!" The daimyo pumped his fist forward with great force, releasing a black type of energy, which gathered up nearby ice it passed, taking the form of a dragon.

Izumi quickly ran her thumb across a second symbol, unleashing a second cloud of smoke and summoning a second puppet. A giant spider puppet broke through the smoke, facing the chakra dragon that came towards it. Its fangs opened up, revealing a metallic plate behind its mouth with a special symbol on it. Doto smirked then jerked his arm to the side, altering the course of his ice dragon. The seal in the spider puppet's mouth started to glow brightly. The ice dragon then turned back towards the puppet, much to Doto's astonishment. The dragon hit the seal, with no affect to the puppet.

"What?" Doto stepped back as he watched his attack rendered useless against a simple wooden puppet.

Izumi swung her hands around, pulling back hard on her chakra strings. The spider puppet's rear lifted up, aimed directly at Doto. The daimyo stepped back, scowling at he puppet. Izumi, with a look as cold as ice formed another hand seal. The spider began to rumble and shake before it fired a powerful beam of chakra out of its rear like a strand for a spider web. The beam shot straight towards Doto, causing the daimyo to sweat just before the beam hit.

The result was a brilliant explosion that consumed everything within several meters from the point of impact. The ground shook, almost causing Naruto and Koyuki to lose balance. Izumi stood still, crouched beneath a set of her spider's legs and a second, crocodile looking puppet behind her.

The smoke began to clear, showing three shadowed figures in the smoke. Izumi narrowed her eyes, readying her puppets.

Sakura began to heal a few of the injuries Doto received. His chakra armor managed to take most of that attack, and had overheated from the immense power. It needed to recharge and cool off before it could be useful again. Dosu and Zaku stood in front of Doto and Sakura, acting as the first line of defense.

The daimyo's pride had taken a bit of a blow, having to be healed by a thirteen year old girl at this point and defended by two children. Dosu had his eyes narrowed in on Izumi as light snow sprinkled down around them.

"You saw that attack right," Dosu asked Zaku.

"Yeah…somehow that puppet turned Doto-sama's attack around on him." Dosu shifted his eyes to the side, turning his head a bit to catch a glance of Doto.

"That jutsu you just used…how does it work?" Doto glared at Dosu, reluctant to tell future enemies how his ninjutsu worked. "If you tell me, I might be able to find out how that puppet works and develop a counter for it."

Doto continued to glare before his chakra armor flickered to life. Sakura gasped softly, startled a bit. Doto quickly rose to his feet and swung his massive arm outward, striking Sakura across the face. Zaku and Dosu turned around in bewilderment from hearing their teammate's cry of pain. Doto shot forward, close-lining the two boys before he continued forward.

"I won't lose here," Doto bellowed, his voice echoing throughout the canyon. "I will bring this country to power and destroy the Alliance and the Lightning/Water Union! Then I, Doto Kazahana, will be ruler of this world!"

Doto shot his fist forward again, unleashing another black ice dragon. He pumped his other fist forward, unleashing another, and another, shooting smaller dragons at Izumi. The puppeteer stepped back, readying herself. She knew if this barrage kept up, that her puppet wouldn't be able to absorb it all.

Sakura held her now throbbing head, looking out at Doto attacking the rogue puppet user. The kunoichi groaned, slowly rising to her feet, "The Lightning/Water Union…? So it's true…"

"War's coming." Sakura quickly spun around, facing a young man wearing an Akatsuki hooded cloak with silver hair. The kunoichi readied herself against her opponent. The young man however simply looked off towards the towering structures to the side. "You know what'll happen if Doto gets the Hex Crystal right? The Land of Snow, when declaring a new leader, holds a ceremony where they pass the Hex Crystal down to the new leader, declaring that person the new leader. The last ceremony, for Sosetsu Kazahana, was held in this very canyon where he promised to lead the Land of Snow to a new age of prosperity. With Sosetsu gone, Doto has taken it upon himself to bring the Land of Snow to a new height in the world. Because of this, he won much support in his early years of ruling, but the people wanted him to continue what his brother started. Everyone knew that if Doto was going to continue his brother's legacy, and make his dreams come true, he would need one thing…"

"The Hex Crystal," Sakura finished. The silver haired boy grinned then turned towards Sakura.

"You're quite the perceptive young lady. Just as I was informed." Sakura turned her head curiously to the side, pondering over the comment. "I'm afraid young lady…I've been ordered by my superiors to kill you." The kunoichi tensed up, quickly bringing out a kunai to defend herself. The Akatsuki rogue chuckled good naturedly, "You see…you've become quite the distraction for a certain…key member in our organization." The boy's grin shrunk into a wicked, chilling sneer. "And you must be eliminated."

Zaku and Dosu appeared in a flash by Sakura's side, both of them ready to fight. "Go ahead and try it hot shot," Zaku snapped.

The boy sneered as he swung his arms outward, his sleeves falling halfway down his arms to reveal two hook swords in hand, "With pleasure…"

* * *

**Well…an update. Shocking no? Sorry it took so long, but I've been helping one of my best friends through a rough patch in her life. That was time consuming, making sure she was okay and whatnot, and I didn't have much time to write. So I apologize everyone who still stuck around with this story lol. I hope you enjoy the long awaited update, and I'll update again as soon as I can.**


	32. A Chilling Battle

Dosu shot forward, pulling his sleeve back to reveal his Melody Arm. Kiriya grinned wickedly as the masked Chunin closed in. The swordsman stuck one of his blades into the ground and flung up a glob of snow into Dosu's face. The Konoha shinobi groaned as his eyes were covered with freezing snow. Kiriya stepped forward slowly, poking the Melody Arm with his hook sword and pushing it back before he twirled around, and slammed his elbow into Dosu's throat. The young shinobi's eyes popped open in shock as he held his neck, trying to gasp for air as his airways closed in, preventing him from breathing.

Kiriya simply nudged Dosu over on the ground with his foot before walking casually towards Zaku and Sakura.

"Well…that didn't go the way I figured it would've," Zaku murmured softly.

Kiriya shot forward, kicking up snow behind him. Zaku stepped in front of Sakura, ready to fight the swordsman. Kiriya hooked one of his blades around the end of the second and swung the bladed hilt at Zaku. The black haired shinobi jerked his head back, watching as the blade narrowly skimmed the tip of his nose.

Zaku aimed his palm upward, blasting the sword high into the air. Kiriya kept his focus on the two Konoha shinobi, a smirk kept on his face. The assassin lifted his left leg up and shot it forward at Zaku's face. The boy ducked as Sakura stepped back, nearly hit with Kiriya's foot. The swordsmen didn't waste a beat as he slipped over Zaku's back, using his left foot as a holding. As he planted both feet into the ground, Kiriya pulled his arm back across his chest, catching his second hook sword with the first. Zaku looked up, gasping in awe before he received Kiriya's foot to his face.

Kiriya spun in a small circle after landing a kick, grabbing the handle of his second sword before ending his twirl facing Sakura in an attack position. The pink haired kunoichi took a hesitant step backwards, a bit unnerved from what she just witness.

"Now little lady…my mission requires me to eliminate you…"

"Who ordered that exactly," Sakura asked. Kiriya raised a ponderous brow, a taunting smirk still on his face. "Can't I at least know that before you kill me?"

Kiriya chuckled, twirling his swords around to hold them in a reverse grip, "I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to tell you young lady. But I assure you my assignment will go a lot easier if you just roll over and die."

"Screw you," Sakura snapped, shifting her weight back.

Kiriya rolled his eyes before launching forward, his blades gleaming.

* * *

Doto scowled furiously as he tried to find a way around Izumi's puppets. The young woman managed to keep some sort of defense between her and him. And despite Doto's impressive speed, Izumi had managed to keep her eye on him every step of the way.

The daimyo had already figured out that the spider puppet took the chakra from a jutsu and somehow fired it back in a form of pure chakra. He had never heard of any device or jutsu that could do something like that. Once he killed her, Doto vowed to dismantle that puppet to learn whatever device she had to siphon pure chakra and fire it back in weaponized form without use of a jutsu.

Off in the distance, Naruto scowled in anger as he felt completely useless at the moment. He knew guarding Koyuki was important, and that at this stage nothing bad could happen to her, but he wanted to be helping Izumi more than anything.

"Hey," Naruto snapped, looking back up over his shoulder. Koyuki turned down to look at her blonde bodyguard. "There's some reason that Doto brought you here right? Do you know why?"

Koyuki looked out to the shrine as a chilling wind blew softly. "This is where father had his ceremony when he was made daimyo. The last daimyo gave him the Hex Crystal…which is the closest thing our country has to a crown. My father…has some type of treasure which could only be unlocked with the Hex Crystal."

"Then that's what we gotta do!" Koyuki stepped back, a bit shocked by Naruto's sudden eager outburst. "If you get the Hex Crystal to unlock whatever treasure your father hid away, then we can use it to fight Doto and you can take the Land of Snow like you're supposed to!"

Overhearing the blonde's outburst, Doto stopped and gazed off towards the princess and the shinobi in disbelief. "NO!" The daimyo shot forward, rocketing right past Izumi.

The puppeteer gasped as she turned, quickly sending her crocodile puppet forward. Despite the wooden creature's speed, Doto with his artificial wing was much faster. The daimyo's eyes were bloodshot, seeing red as he focused in on Naruto and Koyuki.

"GIVE ME MY HEX CRYSTAL!"

Naruto and Koyuki looked back, both of them caught off guard by what was coming at them. The blonde quickly steeled himself, pulling his fist back. Doto was faster though as he slammed his oversized fist into Naruto, smashing the blonde through the ice he stood on.

Koyuki was thrown back a bit, but the princess stayed on her feet. Once her mind registered what had happened, she was in shock. "No…NARUTO!"

Doto turned towards Koyuki, his eyes as cold as could be before he approached his niece. The daimyo's eyes snapped to the side as a giant tail made of pure steel slammed into his side. Doto's eyes widened in pain before he spun around, sliding to a halt as his arm hung limply by his side.

The ice behind Doto broke, causing him to whirl around in surprise. Naruto, who still had his fist pulled back, with a newfound fury in his eyes, slammed his fist into Doto's face. The daimyo's face was thrown to the side before his entire body was smashed beneath the ice.

Cracks started to snake out from the two holes that Doto and Naruto formed, threatening to break under the princess. Izumi quickly moved her puppet next to the princess, who quickly jumped onto the wooden animal.

"Damn it," Izumi murmured, "I hope that was enough to put Doto down for awhile…"

"Izumi!" The puppeteer looked out to Naruto who was waving frantically at her, "Get the princess to use the Hex Crystal on the shrine! If she does it she'll be considered the ruler of the Land of Snow, and they won't get involved in the war!"

"Got it!" Izumi quickly, but gently pulled her crocodile puppet back towards her. As the puppet began to move through the water, something massive broke through the ice, swooped down and grabbed Koyuki. "Damn it!"

Naruto's fury grew as he swung his arm to the side, "Just stay down already!"

Doto smiled, blood running down from his hairline down his face, but he still smiled with a composed expression. The daimyo took the Hex Crystal draped around Koyuki's neck and jerked it off her neck, breaking the strap.

"Thank you princess," Doto stated, admiring the Crystal, "Now I have no further use for you." The daimyo flew up a bit higher into the sky, enough to drop Koyuki from lethal heights. The princess cried out as she plummeted to the ground while her devious uncle simply smiled down at her.

"KOYUKI," Naruto sprinted to where the princess would fall, despite the fact he wouldn't make it in time.

Halfway through her fall, the princess was suddenly grabbed by a blur. Doto, Naruto, and Izumi all gasped in confusion before they saw a giant bird that had caught the princess. On top of the bird perched Deidara who glared at Doto with one eye closed from when the daimyo punched him.

"Deidara," Naruto called out happily. The artist quickly threw a small, handheld bomb that flew through the air at blinding speeds. The bomb went off like a tiny firecracker on Doto's wrist, causing the daimyo to drop the Hex Crystal.

"NO!" Doto dove for the Crystal, his arm outstretched towards his prize.

"Grab on and don't let go," Deidara ordered. Koyuki quickly wrapped her arms around Deidara's neck as his bird began to pick up speed. "HEY BASTARD!" Doto quickly snapped his head in Deidara's direction, eyes wide in horror. Deidara's eye was wide open in bloodlust as he closed in, "HEADS UP!" The artist shot off into the air, high off of his clay bird before it impacted with Doto.

The daimyo's chakra armor started to spark before a cataclysmic explosion went off, consuming Doto in smoke and fire.

Koyuki cried out in fear, wrapping her legs around Deidara as they both fell towards the ground. Naruto watched as the glimmering Hex Crystal fell towards the ground, towards the icy water. The blonde dove forward, sliding across the ice just in time to grab the Crystal before it landed in the water.

"I got the Hex Crystal!" Izumi let out a sigh of relief while Deidara and Koyuki both smiled at their comrade.

The smoke from the fiery explosion broke, revealing an enraged Doto Kazahana dive-bombing towards Naruto. The blonde looked up, eyes wide in fear before Doto's full force was slammed into him, breaking through the ice and pushing him deep within the depths of the icy water.

"Damn it," Deidara shouted just before he landed on the ground with Koyuki on his back.

"NARUTO!"

* * *

Sakura turned her head as Koyuki's cry echoed thought the land. The kunoichi's head snapped back around as she remembered she was in a fight. Kiriya swung both of his swords outward, attempting to behead Sakura before she leaned back. The pink haired woman straightened her back before throwing her fist forward. Kiriya crossed his swords in front of his face, the force of the blow throwing him back a few feet away from Sakura. The swordsman landed in the snow and twirled his blades around before holding them at his sides.

"Well, I almost had you that time didn't I," Kiriya mused. Sakura kept her eyes focused on the assassin, but her eyes softened noticeably. Kiriya twirled his sword around before planting the blade in the ground and leaning on its hilt. The assassin looked off towards the other, not too far off battle with narrowed eyes. "Well…I'm sure losing our prized Jinchuriki will put the damper on Akatsuki's power."

"Naruto isn't dead!" Sakura quickly shut her mouth. Kiriya's eyes shifted back over to Sakura, the smirk on his face spreading into a grin.

"So…you do have feelings for the brat eh?" Kiriya kicked his sword, twirling it around in his hand before resting it on his shoulder. "Well, that means it goes both ways. I guess if that's the case I'll give you a chance to join Akatsuki." Kiriya turned and faced Sakura, lowering his head to glare up at the younger shinobi. "Join us…be with Naruto…or I kill you on the spot."

Sakura's face hardened once more with fiery determination. She shifted back and clenched her fists tightly. "Go to hell! I won't let fear change who I am or what I believe!" Kiriya sighed, lifting his sword off his shoulder. He examined the blade for a moment before letting his arm hang limply by his side.

"You wouldn't be the first Akatsuki has manipulated, or brainwashed into joining. Not a considerable number of our forces have done so, but more than a handful." Kiriya started to walk casually towards Sakura. "Then again, Konoha and your Alliance has done that to many more. Iwagakure being one of them. First they were forced into servitude, and then manipulated by you."

"I didn't manipulate anyone!"

"Not intentionally, no. But how do you expect anyone to believe that Kurotsuchi, the little girl who was so loyal to her grandfather and her village would just turn over a new leaf like that?" Sakura's eyes softened again as she tried to stand firm. Kiriya twirled his sword around tauntingly before pointing the curved end at the kunoichi. "Your Alliance has even been known to make civilians from smaller villages in the Land of Fire to fight for them. Though genjutsu or blackmail, they turn ordinary citizens into Alliance fanatics. Of course, there aren't many other countries that are better than Konoha.

"The Land of Water, known for its ruthlessness, had it be tradition that entire academy students would kill each other in order for _one_ student to pass. There have been countless civil wars, mistreatment of those with kekkei genkai, and so many more crimes and evil deeds throughout its history. One of the bloodiest and most violent countries out of the Five Great Nations. The Land of Lightning perhaps has one of the most despicable secrets of all. In its history, it's been known to bump heads with every shinobi nation. Not enough to cause a full blown war, but certainly enough for certain villages to take action. The Land of Lightning has been known to kidnap children, or young adults with special types of chakra, or special kekkei genkai, take them back to Kumogakure, and…produce their own special talents."

Sakura's eyes widened in horror as soon as she realized what Kiriya meant. "Men, women, adult, child, it didn't matter. If they had an ability that could be useful to Kumogakure, they would do anything to make sure that children with that type of chakra or kekkei genkai would be born and raised in Kumo to follow the village's way to better fight the Alliance. Quite despicable really…but then again…they just ran rampant with one of Konoha's earlier ideas."

Kiriya shot forward, swinging his swords around with blinding speeds. Sakura managed to narrowly dodge all of the assassin's strikes, swings, and slashes. A small opening revealed itself and Sakura took it. The kunoichi shot her fist forward at Kiriya's head. The assassin simply flowed around the blow and got around to Sakura's backside. He swung his sword upward, aiming for her neck. The kunoichi quickly jerked her head forward and fell to the ground, sweeping her leg across the snow.

Kiriya lifted his feet off the ground, hopping up into the air before he thrusted his second sword down at Sakura. This time, the curve of the blade cut through Sakura's shit and sliced into her side. Sakura cried out in pain as blood started to drain onto the pure white snow. Kiriya slammed his foot on Sakura's wrist, and used his knee to pin Sakura's other arm to the ground. The assassin crouched down and leaned forward, inches from Sakura's face.

"I have no pity for dogs of the Alliance…which is yet another reason I was chosen for this job." Kiriya cupped his hand around Sakura's chin, forcing her to look into his eyes. The Konoha kunoichi then felt a burning pain from where she got cut spread quickly through her body and up to her chest. Sakura started coughing, feeling blood rise up from her throat. "Oh, my poison kicking in already? Good to know. The poison is merely to paralyze you. I'm gonna take as much time as I can killing you slowly…"

Sakura screamed in anger as she smashed her forehead into Kiriya's face. The assassin cried out, stumbling backwards off of Sakura. The kunoichi quickly got up, tearing the blade out of the ice and pointed it at Kiriya. The Akatsuki assassin stumbled back a bit more before regaining his balance, holding his now bloody nose.

"I'm not going down without a fight you son of a bitch," Sakura said firmly, holding her bleeding side with her free hand.

Kiriya looked at the wound, wondering how his poison wasn't taking as much of an affect anymore. After a few moments of pondering, Kiriya finally strolled forward, his sword dragging across the top of the snow.

"Medical ninjutsu eh? Quite advanced for a Genin if you can counter the affects of my poison." Kiriya's smirk vanished into a hard pressed line, his eyes glaring coldly at Sakura. "I guess I can still just cut you up instead."

Sakura tilted her head to the side curiously, noting Kiriya's reaction. The assassin shot forward, swinging his sword at Sakura full force. The kunoichi blocked the strike, spun around and threw her leg up at Kiriya's head. The Akatsuki shinobi jerked his body to the side as Sakura's leg passed by over his head. He swung around, attempting to hook his sword around his opponent's ankle. Sakura sprung up into the air, observing everything so quickly time seemed to slow.

The kunoichi planted one of her feet on Kiriya's face, coiled back, surged some chakra through her leg, and rocketed back. The assassin flew back, slamming hard into the snow while Sakura flipped backwards gracefully. She landed, holding the sword across in front of her while glaring over at Kiriya. Pain surged through the side of her body, causing Sakura to wince and focus again on healing and getting the poison out of her body.

Kiriya sprung up to his feet, glaring hard at the young kunoichi. "So, I guess you're pretty proud of your shit poison aren't you," Sakura asked. Kiriya's eyes flared up in anger, causing the corners of Sakura's lips to tug back in a smile. "Not that impressive if you ask me. Maybe you underestimated me? Or overestimated yourself? I mean come on, I've hardly had any advanced medical training and your poison isn't affecting me."

Kiriya's frown quickly changed into a smile as he started to laugh. Sakura scowled slightly, realizing that the assassin had already figured out her ploy. "Childish tactic, but you did manage to build up my temper a bit. Well done girl."

"Worth a shot," Sakura murmured. The kunoichi glanced over back at the other battle, which was still at a stand-still. Sakura's emerald eyes traveled back towards Kiriya, who was now within striking distance.

Sakura yelped in shock, raising the sword up to shield herself as Kiriya brought his blade down on her full force. The blow caused Sakura to fall to the ground on her back, holding the sword up as Kiriya pressed down on her, a sinister, calm smile on his face.

"Get ready to die little girl…"

* * *

Izumi stared down at the settled water where Doto took Naruto down at, waiting for any sign of attack. "Where the hell is he…?" Suddenly, an echoing crash was heard behind Izumi, causing the puppeteer to whirl around in horror.

Doto, now completely soaked from head to toe in freezing water, the blood running down his face washed away, swung his arm out, slamming his forearm into Izumi's head. The puppeteer was immediately dazed before she was sent flying across the battlefield. Izumi hit the snow and rolled over herself before stopping, face first in the ground and unconscious.

Her puppets went limp as well, no longer having a flow of chakra through their body. Doto smiled in satisfaction before raising the Hex Crystal up to eye-view, admiring the gem silently before looking out across the frozen planes at Deidara and Koyuki.

The princess looked on her horror, her eyes wide in grief at the thought that Naruto didn't escape. Deidara put himself between Doto and Koyuki, smirking cockily as he reached back into his pouch. His cock smirk vanished as soon as he felt nothing in his pouch.

The artist quickly yanked his pouch off of his waist and practically stuffed his entire head inside of it, shaking it upside down, digging even further into it for even the slightest bit of clay.

"Damn it, no!"

"Looking for something?" Deidara gasped at the nearby voice. Doto had closed the distance, and slammed his fist into the artist's stomach a second after he finished his question. Deidara's eyes bulged out in pain before he hawked up a mouthful of blood. Doto laughed before he swung his other fist across Deidara's face. The artist flew straight into the ground, rolling over his own head before falling on his back motionless. "That takes care of that pestilence." Doto turned towards Koyuki, who visibly flinched in horror. The daimyo sneered before approaching his niece, "Now…to tie up loose ends. I'm going to finish you as I finished your father little princess."

Koyuki trembled in fear before turning around and running the opposite direction. Doto chuckled evilly before followed after the princess at a slow pace.

Koyuki continued to run, hot tears running down her face.

The princess slowed down, reaching up to touch the water spilling out of her eyes. "Am I…crying…?" Koyuki's face twisted in anguish at the fact that this was the first time she cried actual tears since her father died. An image of Naruto's goofy, grinning face stayed plastered in her mind. "Naruto…"

Koyuki watched as the tear on her fingertips slowly froze over. The princess closed her eyes and clenched her fist. She looked over at Doto who still grinned at her as he approached.

Koyuki looked around before quickly running towards Izumi's crocodile puppet. Doto chuckled mockingly as he watched the princess fumble with the wooden contraption. Finally, the princess turned around, holding a kunai pointed at Doto in her hands. The daimyo stopped momentarily, so surprised by the action before he exploded with laughter. Koyuki's eyes and resolve remained hard as she didn't take her eyes off her uncle.

Finally, Doto lowered his head, sneering lowly at Koyuki, "Tell me dear princess, what do you plan to do with that? I just defeated three shinobi single handedly. I can handle one foolish princess with delusions of grandeur and a tiny blade."

"You're the delusional one Doto," Koyuki snapped. The daimyo's eyes hardened as he frowned at the princess. "You think you're going to take on the Five Great Shinobi Nations? Even with whatever my father was making here, you're going to get crushed!" Doto's frown proceeded into a furious scowl. Koyuki smiled as she tightened her grip on the kunai. Her smile only enraged her uncle further. "You're just a sad little man Doto. You wanted to be ruler of the Land of Snow, so you lie and stab my father, your own brother in the back. Now you want to take over the world? Well I've got news for you! This is _MY_ country! I'm not going to give up, and I'm going to defeat you and rule this land!"

"I'd like to see you try!"

Doto rushed forward, his heavy footsteps planting into the snow hard. The daimyo's eyes burned in anger as he focused on Koyuki. The princess stood her ground for a moment before running towards her deranged uncle. Doto threw his fist forward at Koyuki's head. The princess's head quickly snapped under the oversized fist, causing Doto's face to twist in shock.

What Doto saw next horrified him.

Koyuki slapped a paper bomb, which she tore off of the kunai she held, onto the generator for his chakra armor. She then placed the blade on the metal generator and ground the blade against it, igniting the edge of the bomb. Doto cried out in horror before Koyuki took the Hex Crystal from him and rushed off to the side and dove just as the bomb went off.

The explosion propelled Koyuki forward, causing her to smack against some ice hard. The princess rolled over and over before coming to a stop, her face now banged up a bit from slamming into the ice. A small trail of blood ran down the side of her face. She winced in pain, looking out at the smoke and fire that consumed her uncle. Koyuki then lifted her hand up above her face, staring at the Hex Crystal as it glimmered brightly with the sunlight, hidden behind some darkened clouds.

A booming, horrendous cry caused Koyuki to snap her head around. The smoke cleared as Doto stumbled out, his clothing burned and charred, his skin scorched and singed. Blood ran down his face, arms, and chest, forcing him to close one eye. His hair was disheveled and his face was twisted in absolute outrage.

Koyuki quickly rose up to her feet. Doto appeared before her in a flash, staring down at her in fury. The princess was about to scream, but was quickly silenced when Doto's hand closed in around her throat. Koyuki gasped for air before Doto lifted her off the ground.

"I didn't expect that from you to be honest princess," Doto seethed, his fingers twitching in anxiety. "You surprise me, truly you do. But now…you're more trouble than you're worth." Doto took the Hex Crystal from Koyuki again. He observed the crystal before looking back up at Koyuki. "I'm going to enjoy breaking your neck dear princess…"

"I don't think so!" Doto gasped softly as someone or something latched to his back. The daimyo turned around to see Deidara, in a rather unorthodox manner, trying to hold him in a full-nelson.

"What in the world do you think you're doing…?"

"Distracting you!" Deidara slammed the palms of his hands against Doto's cheeks. The daimyo's eyes shifted back and forth in confusion before something gnawed at his cheeks.

Doto cried out in pain while the mouths in Deidara's hands started biting and chewing on the daimyo's cheeks. Deidara himself then chomped down hard on the back of Doto's singed neck. Doto dropped Koyuki and the Hex Crystal as the pain overwhelmed him. He stumbled back, clawing at Deidara, trying to get the artist off his back.

"RUN," Deidara shouted at Koyuki before biting on Doto's neck.

The princess coughed, rubbing her throat to ease the pain. She looked around desperately for either her Hex Crystal or the kunai she used just a moment ago.

Doto finally got a firm grip on Deidara's cloak and yanked him violently off his back. Deidara cried out in shock before he was slammed into the thick ice with Doto's full might. The artist cried out as the ice gave way under the pressure, cracks snaking out from his body.

The daimyo turned towards Koyuki, eyes filled with murderous intent. As soon as Doto reached for Koyuki, the princess cried out in fear. Before Doto could lay a hand on her however, some force of wind pulled the daimyo back, lifting him off his feet. The daimyo clawed at the ground for a holding. He finally got one from a crevice in the ice.

Doto turned his head back, seeing the black and golden puppets Izumi was wielding a moment ago with the puppet user herself standing on the shoulders of her weapons. The three of them had the same hand sign. Somehow, the triangular shape between the three of them had created some type of vacuum which was threatening to suck Doto in.

'_The Three Treasure Suction Crush! Impossible!'_

Izumi's hair flew about wildly as her eyes were kept solely on Doto Kazahana.

* * *

Kiriya scowled in annoyance as he had yet to get any closer to kill Sakura. Finally, the assassin dove forward, hooking the end of his blade around the one Sakura took and jerked the weapon out of the young girl's hands. Sakura gasped before quickly rolling and springing to her feet, inadvertently avoiding two separate strikes.

Sakura quickly pulled out a kunai as Kiriya stabbed forward. Using the shorter blade, Sakura averted the sword away from her. Kiriya twirled his sword around and pulled back hard. The hook end of his blade cut through Sakura's kunai with ease. The kunoichi looked at her worthless weapon for a moment before tossing it to the side. Kiriya spun around, swinging his sword at Sakura's already wounded side. The kunoichi sprung up into the air and slammed her foot down on the blade. Kiriya scowled and swung his second sword at Sakura's head. She ducked under it and then shot her foot up, connecting it to the bottom of Kiriya's chin. The assassin flipped backwards, curling his body up into a tight ball. Before he landed, he pulled back hard on the sword under Sakura's foot, pulling the kunoichi's footing out from under her.

Sakura cried out and spun around, catching herself on her hands and knees. She looked up and quickly rolled to the side as Kiriya swung both swords down on her. Using the blades to give himself momentum, Kiriya propelled himself forward and landed in front of Sakura. He kicked Sakura hard in the ribs, causing the kunoichi to cry out in pain. As Sakura rolled over again, she stopped when a blade came down in front of her eyes.

The blade dragged through the snow, causing Sakura to sit up quickly and run away. Kiriya gave chase, a bloodthirsty smile on his face. Sakura quickly got to her feet and immediately had to jerk her head back. One of the swords barely grazed her cheek. Kiriya swung his other sword around. Sakura jumped back, the blade slightly cutting her arm.

Sakura took a second to look at the cut on her arm, _'Damn it, he's faster than I thought!'_

Kiriya continued to press forward, swinging his swords around and around again and again, trying to cut or graze Sakura. His movements were fast enough, that finding an opening was more difficult than before for Sakura.

The kunoichi finally got creative as Kiriya swung for her head. Sakura knelt down, placing her hands on the snow. She used chakra through her arms and legs and sprung backwards, throwing up a blinding sheet of snow up in front of Kiriya.

Sakura landed on her feet, losing her balance for a bit before she slid back. Falling to her knees, Sakura felt as though her limbs weighed several tons. She panted heavily, sweat pouring down her face despite the chilling temperature.

Kiriya started forward again, shrugging some residing snow off of his shoulder. "Well…this has been quite entertaining. But I'm afraid all good things must come to an end." Kiriya stood a few feet from Sakura, grinning as he held his sword up to eyelevel. "Any last words?" The pink haired girl panted heavily, slowly lifting her head up to look up at Kiriya.

"What about Naruto…?"

"What about him?"

Sakura's eyes narrowed, filled with anger and hatred, "You really think that he'll just roll over and let you walk free after you kill me?" Kiriya's normal, confident smirk vanished into an even line. "Whoever told you to kill me must have shit for brains!" Sakura cringed as her body ached in pain. The kunoichi turned up to look at Kiriya before slowly, shakily standing up. "Naruto has feelings for me too…if he figures out that you killed me-,"

"You're just a simple casualty," Kiriya interjected. Sakura gasped softly, eyes growing larger at the realization. "All that stands between me helping my comrades with Doto Kazahana over there." Kiriya pointed his sword past Sakura to emphasize his point. Sakura scowled while Kiriya giggled giddily. "Do you honestly think me a fool? Silly, stupid girl. Now…is there anything else you'd like to say? Perhaps…a message you'd like me to give your uncle?" Sakura's eyes flared up in anger. Her face twisted in fury, her body heating up quickly. Kiriya didn't seem to pay attention as he turned away, cupping his chin in his hand, "Maybe he'd lose the will to live if I told him you were dead. Having lost his last family member…hard to think of what that could do to a man." Sakura clenched her fists so tightly, her knuckles turned white. Kiriya chuckled as he was caught up in his own thoughts.

The assassin was pulled out of his mind when someone grabbed his arm, causing him to snap his head around. Sakura gripped him tightly, face plastered with rage. "Don't…you dare threaten my family YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" Sakura's arm was a blur as her arm rocketed forward, slamming her fist into Kiriya's face before he could grab his second sword.

The assassin flew off to the side, bouncing off the snow once before rolling over and over with great momentum. Finally, Kiriya sat up and stabbed his sword into the ground, grinding himself to a halt. He snapped his head up in anger to glare at Sakura, only to realize that she was in front of him. Before Kiriya got stand, Sakura kicked the sword to the side, throwing the assassin's balance off. Sakura then slammed her fist into Kiriya's face again, and then jabbed him in the stomach. The assassin stumbled back, coughing as he held his stomach before swinging at the assaulting kunoichi.

Sakura ducked under the strike and swung her arm upward, slamming her fist against the bottom of Kiriya's chin. The young assassin was lifted off of his feet and had the chance to land. He unexpectedly stumbled backwards as Sakura stalked forward again. Kiriya once more swung at Sakura, trying quickly to behead her. The kunoichi ducked and rushed forward, slamming her shoulder into Kiriya's gut. Sakura took Kiriya down, pinning his arms to the ground with her knees before she started to wail on his face with her fists.

Her eyes were bulging in rage, Kiriya's threat towards her uncle going over and over in her mind. She continued to beat on his face for all he was worth, thinking about Higure and everything he had done for her. She promised him that she would come back to him, and she wasn't going to allow anyone to break her promise.

Sakura grabbed the collar of Kiriya's shirt, holding him up as she started to beat him in the face over and over before she realized he was unconscious. Sakura panted softly, her body once again feeling as though it was made of bricks. She looked at the bloodied face of the assassin that tried to kill her. For good measure, and a bit of a personal grudge, Sakura punched Kiriya in the face one more time.

She dropped the Akatsuki shinobi into the snow before she stood up. Sakura looked down at her knuckles. Combined with the cold and all the punching, she had inadvertently busted them open, blood dripping down her fingers. Sakura turned and stared off into the distance. She saw Doto clinging for dear life as a vortex threatened to suck him in and crush him. Sakura sighed softly, deciding to let the treacherous leader get what he had coming to him.

Sakura's eyes widened before she cried out in pain. Searing agony surged through her back before she fell to the ground face first. Hot tears from the pain alone ran down her face as she tried to reach back to the wound. Sakura looked up, seeing a bloody, and insane looking Kiriya clutching a sword, grinning maniacally down at her.

"Well…that sure got you fired up didn't it," Kiriya hissed viciously. The assassin giggled like a madman as he approached Sakura, twirling his sword as he took a small lap around his prey. "I've gotta say though…you're sure a hell of a lot stronger than I figured. But…that's over and done with! I'm through screwing with you!" Kiriya lifted his sword up high above his head. Sakura closed her eyes and turned away, waiting for the inevitable. "DIE!" Kiriya swung down, his blade traveling through the air as a blur.

Sakura whimpered softly to herself, waiting for pain or the embrace of death, but nothing came. Finally, the kunoichi slowly turned back around, seeing a small figure wearing a tattered and torn Akatsuki jacket standing over her with his back turned to her.

Naruto caught Kiriya by the wrist, glaring at the assassin with a look that could kill. Kiriya scowled, trying to break free of the boy's hold. Naruto didn't budge in the slightest, keeping his eyes focused on Kiriya.

"What're you doing? We're on the same team!" Naruto tightened his grip, causing Kiriya to cry out in pain.

"I don't care…I'm not going to let you hurt Sakura-chan!" The kunoichi was in awe when she heard Naruto's voice. The Jinchuriki squeezed the assassin's wrist harder, causing Kiriya to cry out louder and fall to his knees, dropping his sword in the snow. "You make a habit of attacking girls in the back? HUH COWARD?" Kiriya screamed as he felt his wrist about to break.

Finally, the assassin stood up and socked Naruto in the face. The older Akatsuki shinobi gasped as the boy kept his eyes focused, and on Kiriya. Naruto twisted his hand a bit, cracking Kiriya's wrist. The assassin cried out in agony as Naruto released him. Kiriya fell to his knees, holding his hand in pain.

"Why were you trying to kill Sakura-chan!"

"Someone ordered him to kill me," Sakura suddenly found herself saying. Naruto's eyes widened in building rage.

"You can't be serious! She's the enemy? You're going to trust her? She's trying to turn you against Akatsuki!" Naruto lifted Kiriya up by his collar, glaring coldly at him.

"Who gave the order…?"

"She was standing between me and Doto! I was trying to help you all!"

"WHO WANTS SAKURA-CHAN DEAD?" Naruto tightened his grip on Kiriya's collar. "Tell me and I'll let you live!" The assassin then grinned deviously.

"If you kill me, I promise you your life in Akatsuki won't get any easier. How many more will see you as a beast if you kill one of your own comrades?" Naruto scowled, his eyes slowly shifting to their reddish color. Kiriya smiled and continued, "You already killed two Akatsuki shinobi…how many would you kill to protect Sakura?"

"SHUT UP!" Naruto slammed his fist right into Kiriya's face. The assassin's cloak tore as he was sent flying through the air.

Sakura was still in shock, seeing Naruto beat and threaten one of his own for her; the enemy. The kunoichi slowly moved to get up, but winced in pain immediately. Naruto turned around, and knelt next to her, his rage washing away immediately in place of concern.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto held Sakura up a bit before he started fumbling in his pouch. "Hold on, Konan-neechan made me a medicine that'll help." Naruto pulled out a small vial that contained a green liquid. He popped the cork and poured the contents into Sakura's mouth. Immediately, she felt her body lighten and her charka flowing easier. "Is that better?"

"I…uh…" Sakura was a bit shocked by the affects of the medicine, but finally realized to turn to Naruto. She was caught in his eyes, and he her's. "Y-yeah…I feel better. Thank you…Naruto."

"N-no problem…" Naruto looked at the ground awkwardly before turning his head back over his shoulder. "Sakura-chan…I…I know I can't protect you forever while I'm on Akatsuki's side…" The blonde turned around, looking back into Sakura's green eyes. "And…I know it'll be hard. But I'm not going to give up on these feelings I have!" Sakura blushed a bright red, her eyes widening and her mouth shrinking in surprise. "What I feel…you and me…it just feels right. I don't know how I'm going to make it work Sakura-chan, but I promise I'll move heaven and earth to make it happen!"

"Naruto…"

"I know you probably think it's stupid, and it'll never work, and you think I'm stupid for even trying, but I won't give up Sakura-chan. No matter wha-," Naruto was cut off when Sakura grabbed him and captured his lips with her. The blonde moaned in shock, eyes wide with confusion. Sakura broke the kiss, leaning back and smiling at Naruto. After a moment of pause, Naruto finally rubbed the back of his neck, his cheeks flushed and red hot. "So uh…what does that mean…?"

Sakura smiled, her eyes falling to the ground, "It means that I'm still not going to leave Konoha." Naruto's face was stricken with grief before he looked up at Sakura. "I have too much to leave behind Naruto. I can't just pick up and go."

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto was on the verge of tears as he clenched his fists. "Then what the hell did you kiss me for! You just mess with guy's heads like that for a living or something?"

Sakura smashed her fist into the top of Naruto's head, burying his face into the snow. With an agitated look on her face, Sakura's brow twitched while Naruto's leg did the same in pain.

Sakura sighed before pulling Naruto's head out of the snow and straightening him up, "Let me finish idiot." Naruto rubbed the newly formed bump on his head, whining softly before looking back at Sakura. "I was going to say that…if you can somehow, in some miraculous way, make it so that Akatsuki and Konoha aren't enemies, and you still want to…be with me," Sakura's cheeks reddened noticeably as she averted her gaze and murmured, "I could wait for you I guess…"

Naruto's face fell in disbelief, and then brightened up in pure and utter joy, "YAHOO!" The blonde shot up into the air, pumping his fists up and down while kicking his legs about wildly. Sakura leaned back, giggling before Naruto hit the snow and embraced her tightly.

The kunoichi was rendered speechless for a moment before slowly wrapping her arms around Naruto as well. Snowflakes gently started to fall around the two embracing shinobi, the two enemies, and the two wayward lovers.

"I promise Sakura-chan…I'll find a way to make this work. I'll find a way for us to be together." Sakura smiled, her heart skipping a beat as she tightened her hug around Naruto.

"I believe you…"

Naruto closed his eyes, enjoying the moment he and Sakura were entrapped in. Nothing else mattered to either of them for what seemed like eternity.

Finally, Sakura half opened her eyes and whispered, "Your friends need your help against Doto…" Naruto opened his eyes too, looking off at the battle. The two shinobi leaned back, staring at one another for a prolonged moment of silence.

"Sakura-chan…you-,"

"I'll be fine. Go help your friends now." Naruto nodded before rising to his feet. He looked off towards the battle for a moment and then looked back down to Sakura. She smiled sweetly up at him before motioning her head towards Doto. Naruto grinned at her and nodded before running off to join the fray.

Sakura turned around, still sitting in the snow as she watched Naruto with a smile on her face, "…Go get em Naruto…"

* * *

Doto scowled before he lost his grip and was being pulled towards Izumi and her puppets. The daimyo finally performed a series of hand signs and unleashed another black ice dragon. The speed of the jutsu, combined with the suction of Izumi's jutsu, caused the dragon to shoot forward ahead of Doto. Izumi scowled as she watched the dragon close in and erupt at the opening of the vortex. The dragon's ice spread, covering the two puppets in a sheet of ice. Izumi sprung up at the last second, and only her shins were frozen.

Doto turned and sprung forward, shooting off towards the puppeteer. Izumi flipped backwards, looking down at her legs before snapping her eyes back up at Doto. The daimyo swung his arm forward, trying to hit Izumi. The young woman placed her hands on his arms and flipped past him. Doto turned back around in the air, scowling as he looked down at the falling opponent.

Izumi scowled as she tried to think of some way to break her fall without breaking her back. Suddenly, she felt someone catch her in midair and fall safely towards the ground. She looked back and saw a thirteen year old boy holding her.

"Naruto?"

"Hey," the Jinchuriki beamed happily. Naruto landed on the ground and sat Izumi on the ground.

"Thank you for saving me," Izumi said with a polite nod.

"Hey, wanna know how you can repay me? Tell me how you did that jutsu wind vortex thingie!" Izumi blinked in confusion, her brow raised curiously behind her bangs covering her right eye.

Doto landed on the ground across from Naruto and Izumi, scowling angrily, "I thought I killed him…" He watched carefully as a second blonde, Naruto's shadow clone, walked up to them both and handed the original something. Doto's eyes flared, "My Hex Crystal!"

"He's coming this way," Izumi shouted. Naruto snapped his head around and quickly formed more shadow clones.

"Alright, formation guys!" The shadow clones scattered about, two in front of Izumi, and two more standing out further to the sides. The original Naruto stood in the center of his clones, waving the Hex Crystal around, "Oh yoo-hoo! Doto, I got your Hex Crystal! Come and get it loser!"

Doto burned with rage as he shot forward, his chakra propelling him to move faster, "You dare?"

"Go, go, go," Naruto shouted, moving back behind his clones.

Two clones rushed towards Doto, but ran in a direction that was out of his way. The daimyo paid them no mind, keeping his eyes focused on his Hex Crystal. Suddenly, Doto was stopped dead in his tracks as something wrapped around him. He looked down, seeing a strange type of chain wrapped around his body.

"What in the world?" Doto looked to his left, and then to his right, seeing chakra chains coming out of the clones' arms.

"Alright, Izumi you're on," Naruto shouted. The puppeteer, her legs now free from the ice courtesy of Naruto, jumped into the air and planted her feet into the shoulders of the other two clones below her.

"Three Treasure Suction Crush!" Doto's eyes widened with horror as the vortex opened up, pulling on Doto a bit. Were it not for the chains holding him tightly, Doto would've been sucked in.

"What in the hell are you planning," Doto shouted over the winds.

The real Naruto's hair and Akatsuki cloak fluttered gently compared to Doto and his clones'. He held his hand out as pure chakra started to swirl about in his palm. Naruto shifted his weight and Rasengan back, a smile plastered on his face, "Ready!"

"Increase suction," Izumi ordered. The wind's force was drastically increased. The chains gave way a bit, bringing Doto closer towards the wind jutsu.

The two clones that had Doto restrained turned around and started running the opposite direction. The daimyo looked back in confusion, trying to break free from the chakra chains. The further they got, the harder it was for the clones to move back.

"That's far enough," the real Naruto shouted. The two clones looked to one another and nodded. The both turned back around, facing the same way as Doto. The daimyo frantically looked back and forth between the clones, squirming against his restraints harder.

"Stop this! Whatever you're doing stop it!"

"Go," the two clones shouted in unison. They sprinted forward, running into the vortex. Their speed, combined with the suction of the jutsu pulled the two Naruto clones and Doto forward with neck-breaking speed.

Izumi bit her lower lip in anticipation, praying like hell that Naruto's crazy idea would work. The real Naruto tensed up, adding a bit more chakra to his Rasengan, and increasing the rotation a little more.

The two clones were a blur as they moved closer towards Izumi and her vortex. In the back, Doto screamed at the top of his lungs as he was being pulled around by an increasingly shorter chain.

"Special Uzumaki Delivery," the two clones shouted. The blonde clones pulled their arms back and hurled their chakra chains forward, releasing Doto.

The daimyo shrieked in horror as he was rocketed forward at speeds that were blinding to him. Doto was pulled through the air, spinning around with the winds of the vortex. Finally, he passed through the formation of the vortex, past two more clones and under Izumi. The pressure crushed several of his bones and sent him right towards Naruto.

Doto weakly tried to open his eyes in horror, but was barely alive as it was. He watched helplessly as Naruto strode towards him, "Rasengan!" The blonde slammed the orb of swirling chakra into Doto's chest.

The impact and force of the jutsu caused the ice under Naruto's feet to give way. Despite the fact he was practically dead, Doto screamed in agony with a newfound life. When the Rasengan exploded, it sent Doto flying through the air, spinning around and around like a rapid pinwheel. Naruto let out a breath of relief, watching the daimyo flying through the air before gravity kicked in and caused Doto to fall towards the ground. Doto's weight and at the force he was going, the former daimyo's corpse to smash through the ice, sinking to the bottom of the frozen lake.

Naruto smiled softly as the sun broke through the clouds, shining down on the young Jinchuriki. The blonde chuckled softly at the victory. Izumi turned around and smiled at Naruto. Needless to say, she was impressed with Naruto's adaptability, and his unique style of tactics. She knew that Naruto would become a great shinobi some day.

In the distance, Deidara huffed bitterly as he was forced to lean against Koyuki. Not only was he irritated that he didn't get the chance to kill Doto himself, but he was so weak that he had to, once again, lean on someone else for support. First a thirteen year old, and now a princess who he himself was supposed to protect. Despite his bitter feelings, Deidara couldn't help but smile once he looked out upon Naruto. Koyuki smiled as well, walking forward with Deidara in tow towards Naruto.

In the opposite direction, Sakura smiled at the dot that was Naruto. She was beyond amazed with the tactic he just used, and how effectively it worked. A smile as warming as the sun in the sky crossed Sakura's face, as she gazed with admiration and love at Naruto.

"Good job knucklehead…"

Naruto turned his head towards Deidara and Koyuki. He have the Hex Crystal to the princess, and then turned to the artist, "So, got beaten again eh Deidara my man?"

"SCREW YOU," the artist shouted, "I was fighting while you were under the ice taking a nap!" Naruto and Koyuki both laughed at Deidara's frustration. Izumi watched not too far away, unable to help herself from smiling as well. Something then caught her attention as Izumi snapped her eyes to the side.

"So sorry to break up the love-fest," a voice called out. Naruto, Koyuki, and Deidara all turned to see the Serpent Five, Iwagakure's team, Sasuke's team, and Shikamaru's team, with a large group of Yuki shinobi at their flank facing them. Kimimaro approached the trio, a bone sword in hand, "I may have let one of you Akatsuki scum slip by, but I'll rectify that by killing you three, and taking the princess. The Land of Snow will join the Alliance."

"I don't think so!" Koyuki dropped Deidara suddenly, causing the artist to yelp out in fright. Naruto cried out in shock before he quickly bent over to pick up the artist. Koyuki started to walk forward, eyes fixated on Kimimaro.

Off to the side, Akatsuki shinobi and Land of Snow rebels arrived on the scene, watching as the princess approached Kimimaro.

Koyuki stopped inches from the leader of the Serpent Five, glaring angrily into his eyes, "Doto Kazahana is dead, which leaves only me to rule this country." The Yuki shinobi murmured softly to themselves. "And I will _not_ put my people through a world war!"

"The Alliance has ways of…making you see our way is right," Kimimaro murmured. "Besides, you're working for Akatsuki. If we needed to, we could send a force up here to kill you and take control of this country ourselves."

"I'll make a deal with you: you, your group, and everyone else in Danzo's Alliance never steps foot in my country and I'll keep my country neutral in the war." Kimimaro smirked, chuckling softly to himself. The leader of the Serpent Five looked back at Koyuki cockily.

"Or what?"

"Or else we join the Land of Lightning, give them the technology and means to create every device that can be used against the Alliance and win the war. We may not have numbers, but we have force to kick more than a few asses in your Alliance." Kimimaro crossed his arms and huffed dismissively.

"These shinobi have gotten use to fighting war under Doto's rule. Why would they serve you? Why should anyone in this country have faith in you?" Koyuki looked down at the Hex Crystal then stepped to the side to look at the shinobi and rebels.

She continued to walk backwards and out in plain sight, her face softening as she looked beseechingly towards her people. "I know that many of you have doubts of me as leader," Koyuki began, her voice loud enough for everyone to hear. "I was just some dumb, overrated actress who ran away from her duty…who gave up on her dreams, and the dreams of those passed down to her. I understand this land is harsh, and to survive many of you have become cold and distant. My father…when he ruled he tried to make the Land of Snow a warmer and kinder place."

Koyuki looked out to the shinobi and then to the rebels, "When my uncle Doto took over…he did it because he wanted nothing more than power. Because his lust for power, he tore down everything my father worked so hard to achieve, and divided this great country in half. Ever since then…all you all have known is war and destruction. Murder and hatred." The princess made her way to a small alter which sat in front of the massive shrine behind Koyuki. "I will work towards rebuilding and striving towards what my father wanted! A kinder and warmer place for everyone in this country to live! This won't be an easy task…" Koyuki then turned her attention to Naruto. The blonde, who was in awe of the speech she was now surprised and dumbfounded that Koyuki was looking at him.

The princess smiled warmly at Naruto before looking out to her people, "But if we keep at it, and never give up, I know we can achieve my father's dream!" Koyuki slammed the Hex Crystal into the slot in the alter. A brilliant flash of light went off and quickly spread throughout the shrine, heading towards the giant pillars.

Despite not having any idea what was happening, Koyuki stood firm as the light spread throughout the Kazahana Shrine. The people of the Land of Snow watched in awe as the light started spreading and radiating over them. Before anyone knew what happened, steam erupted from the shrine, releasing a massive amount of heat that melted the snow. The massive shrine turned out to be a heat generator, which started to melt away the snow and ice around the area.

Under the cold, the snow, and the ice came beautiful, colorful flowers, sparkling lakes, and a clear blue sky overhead. The Yuki shinobi watched in awe, looking at their new beautiful surroundings. The rebels and Akatsuki simply smiled, admiring the spring-like change.

Koyuki smiled, feeling the warmth of spring overcome her. _'Just like you promised eh dad…?'_ Koyuki looked at Naruto, Deidara, and Izumi. Naruto smiled in awe as he looked at the sky and the flowers. Deidara huffed, hiding his amazement behind a mask of boredom. Izumi simply smiled, looking down at a nearby batch of flowers. "The Land of Snow will be renamed the Land of Spring," Koyuki announced. "And we will officially declare ourselves neutral in the conflicts of the Great Shinobi Nations. Are you all with me?"

"We're with you Princess Koyuki," Sandayu shouted. The rebels behind Sandayu cheered, pumping their fists and weapons into the air. Koyuki smiled at them before turning to the Yuki shinobi.

The ninjas all looked between one another, murmuring amongst themselves. Finally, one large Yuki shinobi walked forward, past the Alliance and bowed his head. The rest of the shinobi all chattered a bit louder before a woman walked forward, followed by a small squad. More and more Yuki shinobi walked forward and bowed to their princess, their new leader.

"I thank you all," Koyuki said, "I thank each and every last one of you." The newly dubbed daimyo snapped her attention back at Kimimaro and his group. Despite his demeanor, Kimimaro was a bit nervous. He knew for a fact that they couldn't fight these numbers even if they wanted to. "You'll be escorted back to your ship. Go back to Konoha. Tell Danzo what I told you: if he interferes with my country, even in the slightest way, I'm joining the Raikage and Mizukage."

"You're harboring Akatsuki criminals," Kimimaro stated rather calmly. "Lord Danzo will not stand for this."

"I'm kicking Akatsuki out as well," Koyuki quickly snapped. "I'm not an idiot: they're rogues from each different country. If I harbored any of them, then that would be an invitation for any and every of the Great Shinobi Nations to come barging in here."

"You would so quickly turn away those who've helped you?" Koyuki looked over at Naruto, her eyes filled with remorse. The daimyo looked back at Kimimaro, her eyes hardened.

"I'll be forever grateful to them for what they've done. But I cannot be associated with them anymore if I'm to rebuild my country from the damage my uncle did." Kimimaro huffed bitterly. Koyuki crossed her arms over her chest, "You'll be sent back to your ship Alliance shinobi. Tell your leaders that the Land of Snow is neutral and not to mess with our affairs."

Kimimaro sighed through his nose before bowing his head politely, "As you wish Koyuki-sama." The Serpent Five leader turned around and motioned for everyone to follow him. Needless to say, the rest of the Alliance squad was confused with how quickly their leader complied, and referred to the princess with such respect.

Deidara watched carefully as Kurotsuchi walked by, ignoring the artist. "Hey, Naruto." The Jinchuriki looked at the artist leaning against him, "Take me over to her real quickly." Confused, Naruto shrugged and walked over towards the Iwa kunoichi. "Hey! Kurotsuchi!"

"I'm not speaking to a traitor like you," the kunoichi snapped, keeping her stone cold eyes forward.

"Just tell me why you're so eager to kiss the Alliance's ass after they killed the old man," Deidara asked loudly. Kurotsuchi stopped, causing Naruto to do the same. The Jinchuriki groaned, frustrated that he was brought into whatever drama that was going on.

Kimimaro turned, noticing that Kurotsuchi had fallen behind. The squad leader huffed before turning his body towards the conflict, "Kurotsuchi, hurry up."

"Come on," Deidara murmured smugly. "We both know the old man was worth more to you than your own skin. That's what he trained us to do right? Put him before everyone else?"

"SHUT UP!" Kurotsuchi whirled around to punch Deidara. Naruto cringed away while Deidara scowled. The fist was stopped mere inches away from Deidara's face. Kurotsuchi looked to the side, seeing Sakura holding her fist in place.

"Kuro-chan," Sakura whispered. The Iwa kunoichi wrenched her arm free from Sakura's grip and glared in frustration at her. Kurotsuchi then shifted her glare to Deidara.

"You're not worth it," Kurotsuchi snapped. "Grandfather thought the same thing. That's why he didn't kill you when he had the chance."

"Yeah, it wasn't his hip at all," Deidara replied, laughing softly. Kurotsuchi gave one last scowl before turning on her heels and walking fast away from the Akatsuki artist.

Naruto and Sakura looked back at one another. Sakura was the first to smile. Becoming infectious, Naruto then smiled back. Without a word spoken, Sakura followed after Kurotsuchi.

"Excuse us," Dosu murmured bumping past Naruto. The masked Chunin met Naruto's eyes, a curious glint in his eyes. If Naruto didn't know better he would've guessed Dosu was smiling.

"Pardon me," Zaku said next, patting Naruto's back in an almost friendly manner. Zaku looked back over his shoulder, definitely smiling at Naruto before catching up to Sakura.

Naruto chuckled a bit nervously, watching as the Alliance shinobi simply walked away. Naruto's moment was shattered when he found himself in a forceful headlock, and someone's fist rubbing against the top of his head.

"Don't think I forgot about you," Deidara shouted. "Didn't I tell you that you can't be a better artist than me! And now you throw that mishap of a collaboration jutsu together and show me up yet again!"

"Not my fault you suck," Naruto snapped as he broke out of Deidara's grasp. The Jinchuriki ran off laughing, giving Deidara the finger.

"WHAT'D YOU SAY! I'm gonna make you eat those words! HN!" Deidara chased after Naruto, shaking his fist angrily.

Koyuki, Izumi, Konan, Jiraiya, Sandayu, and everyone else watching simply laughed as the two blondes ran about. Their hearts rested easily, knowing they had liberated the Land of Snow.


	33. Calm Before the Storm

Naruto winced as Konan touched one of his bruises with rubbing alcohol. The blue haired paper user sighed before she put the cotton ball down on a nearby tray, "You have nobody to blame but yourself for that one."

"How are these bruises my fault neechan?"

"You pissed off Deidara," Konan replied, cracking a smirk of amusement. "You're just lucky he didn't have any clay left to use some bombs on you."

"Yeah," Naruto agreed, rubbing the back of his neck while laughing bashfully. "I guess I did luck out." Konan touched a small cut with some rubbing alcohol. "YEOW!"

Konan rolled her eyes, "Yeah, lucky you."

* * *

Jiraiya and Sandayu stood around in the throne room of the palace in the capital city while a few chamber maids helped Koyuki get dressed for her coronation. "So, what happens now that the Princess is the ruler," Jiraiya asked.

"We work on fixing the damage Doto did during his reign," Sandayu answered. The old general looked out of the nearby window, smiling as a pair of birds flew by. "As Lady Koyuki's personal advisor, I'll be helping her as much as I can of course." Jiraiya smiled before he took a seat on a nearby couch. Sandayu walked closer to Jiraiya, his head hanging a bit low, "Lord Jiraiya…she and I are very sorry we must kick Akatsuki out. If we could we would lend you all the aid we could!"

"Think nothing of it friend," Jiraiya insisted, raising one of his large hands up in the air to help stop Sandayu's rant. "Just knowing that Danzo won't have the Land of Snow as an advantage is a victory enough for us."

Sandayu smiled, fighting back the tears of regret that welled up in his eyes. The old general quickly got on his hands and knees, bowing his head to the ground. Jiraiya was taken back by the act, gasping softly.

"It's been an honor to fight alongside you and Akatsuki Lord Jiraiya." The old Sannin rose up from the couch, smiling before patting Sandayu on the back.

"Likewise friend, but you shouldn't be kissing the floor like a dog." Sandayu smiled in embarrassment, standing up off the floor. Jiraiya patted the old general on the arm, laughing kindly.

* * *

In the capital city, Itachi and Hana walked hand in hand. It was their first real date in nearly a year, and Hana for one couldn't be happier. She could only accept so many scouting missions as 'dates.' It was also nice for her to see Itachi smiling happily for the country's newfound freedom and peace. Hana looked away from her boyfriend and started looking at a few stores and restaurants that they were passing. Due to the country's newfound sunshine, most of the Akatsuki members who explored the city did away with their cloaks for awhile. It was also nice not to get bombarded with the appreciation of every citizen that they came across.

"So," Itachi spoke, causing Hana to turn her head back, "Was I right about the princess?" Hana narrowed her eyes while Itachi simply smiled very smugly at her. The Inuzuka simply stuck her tongue out in a very 'mature' manner before turning her head away from Itachi. "That's mature," Itachi stated matter-of-factly. "You can never admit when I'm right can you?"

"Because you're NEVER right."

"I was about this wasn't I?" Hana narrowed her eyes as her lower lip puckered out as she pouted. Itachi closed his eyes as his smile widened. He looked forward and raised his head to the sky, looking at the clouds. "You're impossible, I swear."

"Oh I can give you impossible Uchiha," Hana said with a challenging smirk. Looking around for a moment, Hana set her eyes on something that caused her to grin mischievously. "This way." She pulled Itachi towards the side, causing him to stumble a bit. Hana pulled Itachi towards a store and pointed to a pair of lightweight shinobi boots that were in the window display. "Buy me those."

Itachi's eyes, full of horror and dread as they feasted on the price tag, slowly made their way towards Hana. "What…does this have to do with me being right?"

"You buy me those boots and I'll admit you were right." Itachi's shoulders slumped down and he gave his girlfriend an exasperated look. Hana simply smiled back, trying to look as sweetly as possible.

Itachi looked at the boots, the price tag, and then back at Hana, "You promise you'll admit I was right?"

"Promise." Itachi sighed heavily before reaching into his pocket. He pulled out his wallet, opened it, and quickly counted how much money he had. After a prolonged moment, Itachi shot a wary look at Hana. She rolled her eyes before pushing Itachi towards the door, "I promise I'll admit you were right! Now buy me the damn boots!"

A few minutes later, Hana walked out, admiring her new boots while Itachi mourned the loss of his money. "Why are those boots so expensive…?" In response, Hana turned around and planted a soft kiss on Itachi's cheek.

"You were right about the princess," Hana said as Itachi gave her a curious stare. "And thank you so much for the boots. I'll repay you for them."

"Really," Itachi replied in an unconvincing tone. "How exactly do you plan to do that?" Hana leaned forward, cupping one hand around the side of her mouth and started whispering something. Slowly, Itachi's eyes started to grow larger before he gave Hana look of complete and utter surprise. "That's…fair enough…" Hana pressed her lips together, trying her hardest not to laugh at Itachi's loss of words.

"Come on genius boy," Hana ordered, grabbing her boyfriend's wrist. "I want to walk around a bit more, then we'll work out payment options."

"Wait," Itachi said, a sly smile growing across his face as he was being dragged by Hana. "I bought you those boots…and you're paying me back with…well that, then does that mean you're kind of like a-,"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence Uchiha," Hana threatened, shooting a menacing glare back over her shoulder. Itachi couldn't help but laugh before Hana playfully punched his arm.

* * *

Konan placed a patch over the last bruise on Naruto's face, pressing it down with medical tape. "There you go. You're all patched up now."

"Thanks neechan!" Naruto leapt off of the bed and onto the ground. Konan smirked a bit as she got out of her chair.

"You seem to be in an awfully good mood," Konan pointed out.

"Well yeah! I took out a daimyo and saved a whole nation! Not only that but the princess totally told off that pale guy and his Alliance buddies! I'm on top of the world today big sis!"

"No, it's something else." Naruto stared at Konan, his eyes widening a bit while the latter cupped her chin and smiled. "It's like you're back to your normal self again." The blonde Jinchuriki stuck his tongue out, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"I'm sure you're just over thinking things Konan, I've always been like this." The blue haired woman's smirk vanished, replaced by a look of concern and confusion. "Hey, where's the medical wing? I wanna pay Deidara a visit."

"Not so fast," Konan snapped. Naruto's smile fell as he looked cautiously at the woman he saw as his older sister. "What's going on Naruto? What aren't you telling me?"

"Um…nothing? I just wanna pay Deidara a visit." There was a prolonged pause. Konan studied the boy for a moment. Naruto remained still, his expression the same as he looked directly at his big sister. Finally, Konan sighed in defeat.

"Go straight down the hall, and it should be the second hall on your right."

"Thanks sis," Naruto said, his grin returning. The boy turned around and quickly walked out of the room.

Naruto closed the door and sped slightly down the hall. His eyes drifted to the side, feeling guilty about not telling Konan the truth. He was concerned about who to trust at the moment within the ranks of Akatsuki. In his eyes, all of Akatsuki's main leaders were suspect to sending that assassin to take care of Sakura. Even, no matter how unlikely, Konan. He couldn't rule anyone out just yet.

After about a minute of walking, Naruto turned right into the medical wing. It didn't take long to figure out where Deidara was, due to the screams of pain and outrage. Naruto sighed, scratching the side of his head before he reluctantly walked towards the screaming.

"What the hell are you doing? Pouring salt on all my wounds or something?" Naruto poked his head in the room, seeing a furious looking doctor and a few nurses glaring at an enraged Deidara. "I mean where the hell did you get your medical degree? From a match box?"

"We're trying to help you, and it doesn't do you or us one bit of good when you fuss around like this," the doctor stated.

"Screw you! I've known Genin who were more competent than you clowns!"

Naruto gently knocked on the open door, causing the artist and medical experts to whirl their heads around, "Hey Deidara."

"Get out," the artist snapped everyone besides Naruto. "I'd like to talk to someone who knows how to do their damn job!" The medical team grumbled in anger before walking out of the door. Naruto entered once everyone had left as Deidara examined a few cuts on his shoulder.

"I'd ask how you're feeling…but I'd wager you'd answer with pissed off." Deidara huffed sarcastically before facing Naruto. "Hey…can I ask you something?"

"What is it? What my next masterpiece is so you can just show me up again?"

"No, it's about one of the guys you, sis, and the reinforcements came over with. The guy with the swords and silver hair."

"Kiriya? What about him?" Naruto looked around the room cautiously before closing the door behind him. Deidara cocked a curious brow as Naruto walked closer to his bed.

"What can you tell me about him? Why did he come over with you guys?"

"I don't know much about him my man. Konan said he specializes in assassinations, and is Yahiko's go-to boy." Naruto's eyes shifted to the side as if thinking about something. Deidara blinked in confusion, trying to analyze the boy's expression.

"Why did Konan bring him with the reinforcements then," Naruto asked. "I mean if he's Yahiko's go-to guy?"

"Konan said Yahiko added him to the list," Deidara replied. Naruto's features suddenly changed into anger. The artist was taken back, shifting away from Naruto slightly as if the boy would strike him. He was in no condition to take any sort of beating. As soon as Deidara realized Naruto wouldn't hurt him he finally spoke, "What's wrong my man?"

"Yahiko sent him to kill Sakura-chan…" Deidara tilted his head to the side, raising his brow in confusion. "Neechan had to have known why Yahiko sent that guy! She was apart of this!"

"No I wasn't." Deidara and Naruto both looked to the door, seeing Konan standing in the doorway. Naruto still looked furious as he faced the older woman. "You know how Yahiko is with being overprotective of me Naruto. I figured he was sending Kiriya to watch over me. I didn't think that he'd want to kill Sakura."

"Why didn't you tell him to screw off when he added more people to your group like you always do! Why'd you let him send someone who almost killed Sakura, on his order?"

"Both Yahiko and Tsunade thought I should bring more reinforcements than the number I had hand picked. They both added a number of shinobi they thought would benefit the mission. I was behind schedule to meet Jiraiya and the others as it was, I didn't have time to read over everyone's profile." Naruto scowled, clenching his fists tightly. Konan's eyes softened a bit as she stepped into the room. "Naruto, I know how much you care for that girl. I would never, _never_try to do anything like that to hurt her, or you. You know that."

Naruto's head fell as his arms began to shake slightly from suppressed emotions. Konan and Deidara both watched and waited for the young Jinchuriki to do or say something. The blue haired kunoichi's eyes widened a little when she saw droplets of water fall on the ground by Naruto's feet. Konan quickly moved forward, and hugged Naruto to her. The blonde wrapped her arms back around Konan, sobbing softly into her midsection.

"It's okay Naruto," Konan whispered soothingly as she placed her hand on the boy's head.

"I'm sorry sis," Naruto murmured. "I'm sorry I blamed you…" Konan closed her eyes, huffing softly. She stepped back and knelt down, eyelevel with Naruto. She raised her hand up and wiped away one of Naruto's tears with her thumb.

"That's nothing to be sorry for Naruto. Love sometimes makes people think crazy things, even about those closest to them." Naruto sniffed, wiping away the trails his tears made from his face. Konan placed her hands on Naruto's shoulder supportively and smiled. "I promise when we get home I'll talk to Yahiko about this. And he'd better have answers." Naruto pulled his arm to the side, showing half of his face to Konan before smiling at her.

"Thanks sis…" Konan smiled and kissed Naruto's forehead before standing up. She turned around and walked out of the room, leaving Naruto and Deidara alone together.

* * *

A few hours later, outside of the capital palace a mass of people, citizen and shinobi alike, gathered in the courtyard. Koyuki stood on the other side of the curtain, dressed and made up for her official coronation as daimyo. Sandayu stood next to her, smiling assuredly at the princess. Koyuki turned her head, looking over her shoulder at all of the Akatsuki men and women who fought so hard for her. As soon as she walked out onto the balcony, they would be forced to leave the country for good.

Koyuki turned around, facing the band of rogues, "Words can't express how much I appreciate what you all have done for me. You've sacrificed and given your all so that my father's dream might be realized. The Land of Snow is now the Land of Spring thanks to you all and your combined efforts. This country…and I won't soon forget what Akatsuki has done for us. I owe you all a great personal debt I can never repay." Koyuki bowed before the Akatsuki shinobi before her. "Thank you all…so much." The princess lifted her head up, looking as though she were on the brink of tears.

"We wish you the best Princess Koyuki," Jiraiya spoke with a kind tone. "Rule the Land of Spring as your father would have. If you ever need our help again…don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you Lord Jiraiya."

"Yeah! Deidara and I will beat down anyone who tries to mess with you princess," Naruto added energetically. Koyuki smiled over at Naruto and nodded.

"I appreciate the thought Naruto. If I ever need the world's strongest shinobi, I'll be sure to call you." The blonde chuckled through a grin as he put both hands behind his head. "Thank you all for everything…but I'm afraid I must now ask you to leave."

"Of course princess," Jiraiya murmured with a small bow. "Akatsuki, head back to the docks and get ready to head home." The rogues all turned around and exited the room one by one.

Koyuki watched closely as Naruto moved with the rest of his comrades towards the door. He stopped for a moment and looked back at the princess. He smiled and waved goodbye to her one last time. Koyuki smiled as well, silent tears sliding down her face as she waved back. Naruto took one last look at the princess before exiting the room.

The princess took a small breath as Naruto left, wiping her tears away before turning around to the balcony. She walked forward with Sandayu by her side. The light from the sun shined down on the princess as she overlooked the people of her country.

_'Thank you…Naruto. Grow up to be the strongest ninja you can be.'_

* * *

The ride back to the Land of Fire was a quiet one. Kimimaro was silent because he failed his mission, and the rest of the Serpent Five were worried about the repercussions of failing such an important mission. Shikamaru didn't care, Choji was nervous and munching down like no tomorrow because of it, while Lee was half nervous and half excited about the training exercise Guy sensei would give them for failing. Sasuke was brooding as usual, Hinata was angrily fooling with her nails, and Shino simply sat on the railing next to his teammates.

Sakura seemed to be the only one at peace, and for good, personal, reasons. Her and her teammates were the only ones who chatted amongst each other in the past few days since they departed from the Land of Snow. Even Kurotsuchi seemed a bit distant from everyone.

"YO!" Sakura shook her head, snapping out of her trance before looking over at Zaku and Dosu.

"W-what," the pink haired kunoichi asked in bewilderment.

"Never mind," Zaku murmured.

"S-sorry Zaku. My mind was elsewhere." Sakura rubbed the back of her head, giving an apologetic smile. Dosu huffed before looking out to sea.

"She's just excited to get home. We should be hitting land in a couple of hours, and then we're heading back to Konoha."

"Yeah, then we get reamed for failing," Zaku muttered.

"Good lord! We can almost cut through this negativity with a knife," Dosu shouted, snapping a glare in his teammate's direction. "Maybe you'd like to just jump overboard and drown? Get it all over with."

"That's merciful right," Zaku questioned, turning to Sakura. "It's probably less painful than what Danzo'll do to us."

"He won't kill us. Punish us sure, but not kill us."

Zaku sighed heavily before turning around, looking at everyone else on the deck of the ship, "The way these guys are acting you'd think they know something we don't."

"They're higher up on the food chain," Dosu pointed out. "They're more likely to get punished than a few inexperienced grunts who just recently got promoted."

"But Danzo did pick us specifically to undertake this mission," Zaku fired back. "We're just as responsible as they are."

Sakura sighed softly, smiling as she watched her two teammates bickering back and forth about how Danzo would or wouldn't punish them. It almost felt like old times for her, back before she met Naruto.

A pang of some strange feeling rose up in her throat.

Startled, Sakura rose her hand up and felt her neck frightened. She looked over to Dosu and Zaku to make sure that they were still arguing and not paying attention to her. Thankfully, the two dim wits were still bickering. Sakura sighed softly before leaning on the railing, looking out to sea.

* * *

Naruto hurled his lunch over the side of the boat noisily. Itachi made a face, averting his eyes in the other direction while leaning his butt against the railing next to Naruto. After a few seconds of silence, Itachi looked over to Naruto who was leaning back a bit, "Feel better?" Naruto opened his mouth to reply, but immediately shut it, his eyes wide in shock before he puked back over the side of the boat again. After the boy groaned, Itachi looked at his fingernails for a moment, "So…yes?"

The blonde groaned, turning around and falling onto his rear, leaning back against the railing, "I don't remember eating that much…"

"I've heard stories of sailors literally puking their guts out on seas if they upchuck too much." Naruto's eyes nearly popped out of his head as he trembled in fear. Itachi smirked before sitting next to the blonde. "I was joking. Look over this way." Naruto turned his head around with a confused look. Itachi activated his Sharingan, placing a genjutsu under Naruto.

"HEY!" The Jinchuriki shot back several feet, holding his arms up in defense, "What's the big idea? You know I'm super susceptive to genjutsu you…you…" Naruto's face slowly brightened in realization. Itachi smiled and stood up to his feet, putting his hands on his hips. "You…used a genjutsu to make me not sea sick?"

"Since it's not an actual physical ailment, I figured it was worth a shot," Itachi said. "Mind over matter they say. And you are susceptive to genjutsu as you said."

"Uh…thanks Itachi…I think."

"I'll release it once we hit land. Who knows what type of affect it'll have on you once we get on a steady footing." Naruto nodded as Itachi started to walk away. The blonde looked at his hands and wondered if the genjutsu had inadvertently messed with anything else in his body.

"Heads up!" Naruto looked up to the sound of the voice before Deidara landed before him. The artist winced before he fell onto one knee and clutched his side.

"You ever thought of actually _landing_ instead of jumping down from forty feet in the air," Naruto asked with a scolding tone. Deidara chuckled and shakily stood up to his feet.

"I can take it," Deidara insisted, "Just a few scratches."

"Those are the biggest scratches I've seen," Naruto said as he mockingly cupped his chin in his hand and poked one of Deidara's wound. The artist's face flinched in pain before he threw his head back and howled in agony. Naruto laughed as his blonde companion fell onto his back and clutched his now burning wound. "So if those are scratches, does that make you a big baby?"

In an instant, Deidara wrapped his legs around Naruto's neck while still clutching the wound the younger blonde poked just seconds earlier. Naruto gagged as he tried to catch a breath of fresh air, but his throat was being constricted by Deidara's legs.

"You'd better learn to watch your big mouth big-shot," Deidara seethed bitterly.

"Hey, break it up!" Deidara and Naruto both looked up, the latter with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. Konan stood over the two blondes with her hands on her hips as she glared sternly at the idiots on the floor. "Deidara, unwrap your legs from Naruto this instant!" The blue haired woman thought about what she just said and grimaced, "And I pray I'll never have to say that again." The artist begrudgingly unwrapped his legs from Naruto's neck. The Jinchuriki gasped deeply for air as he rubbed his neck. "Naruto, stop aggravating Deidara to the point where he wants to blow you up. We're on a wooden ship. Wood, plus explosion, means we're swimming home."

"Sorry nee-chan," Naruto apologized and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Don't let it happen again," Konan ordered, jabbing her finger at the blonde's to emphasize her point. Deidara nodded before he huffed bitterly in acknowledgement. Naruto gave Konan a salute and winked kindly at her. The Akatsuki senior sighed softly before she turned and walked away.

Halfway down the stairs, she stopped and turned her head around. Just as quickly as the two had been poking fun at each other, the two blondes were then starting to converse to each other, mostly about new 'arts' Deidara could create. Naruto clearly suggested something ludicrous, as Deidara promptly smacked him over the head with an angered expression. Konan sighed before she just shook her head and walked away.

"Hey, Deidara," Naruto murmured quietly. The artist looked up at Naruto, who curiously looked around the ship. "Where's that one puppet girl? Did she come back with us?"

"I think so," Deidara replied. "But heaven forbid someone as noble as her deal with a pack of low-lives like us." Naruto stood up suddenly with his eyes set somewhere else. Deidara looked up curiously at the Jinchuriki before he walked off. Deidara shrugged before he went back to molding a new form of art.

After asking around the ship, Naruto found out that Izumi was hiding out in the lower deck of the ship. The Jinchuriki headed bellow deck, which stunk of mold and dampened wood. Naruto looked around carefully as the ship swayed gently from side to side. Finally, the blonde saw a figure sitting in the corner between a pair of barrels, bundled in a blanket. The young rogue walked towards the puppeteer and sat on top of the barrel next to her.

Izumi didn't even give him a glance as her eyes gazed dully at the floor. Naruto leaned forward a bit to try to catch the puppeteer's eyes. "You're Izumi right?" The Suna rogue sighed softly to herself, and remembering the manners Chiyo drilled into her, nodded once. "I'm Naruto. I want to thank you for your help back in the Land of Snow."

"I only helped your side to keep the Land of Snow to stay out of the coming war," Izumi murmured.

"Well still," Naruto said, the grin obvious from his tone, "I appreciate the help." The blonde waited for a response from Izumi. After a few moments, Naruto hopped off of the barrel and went to leave Izumi alone.

"Don't they feel any regret?" Naruto stopped in his tracks with confusion. Izumi, a bit startled by her own outburst, lifted her head up and looked at Naruto. "Akatsuki I mean. If it wasn't for them sneaking into the Chunin Exams and showing that the Alliance wasn't all powerful, then Lady Chiyo and Lord Ebizo may have never started leaking information about the Alliance!" Naruto's head dropped a bit as his eyes closed. Izumi rose to her feet, and allowed the blanket wrapped around her to fall to the ground. "And they're using children, _children_, like you to fight this war for them! How do they justify being the instigators of a war, and throwing children out on the frontlines!"

Naruto laughed a bit with a wide grin as he turned around and put his hands in his pockets, "Well to be honest, I practically had to claw my way through a lot more capable men and women to be apart of this mission."

"And the two Hyuga Clansmen," Izumi questioned. "The youngest one can't be any older than ten. The other young ice user from the Land of Water, and the purple haired boy too. How many other children is Akatsuki using to fight for them?"

Naruto opened his eyes and his smile dropped a bit as he looked directly at Izumi, "Well I'd rather fight for Akatsuki than for the Alliance. Everyone here, children included, believe that. Neji ran away from home because the Alliance killed his father for a cover up, and Hanabi was treated like dirt by her sister and father. She blackmailed us to get her into the organization actually."

"That's still no justification for them to _fight_ the Alliance! I don't care if they're from the Hyuga bloodline, the Uchiha, or direct descendants from the Sage of Six Paths! Your infiltration of Konoha, boasting your existence and insulting the Alliance leaders directly, and taking Suna's only Jinchuriki is the reason that Chiyo and Ebizo are gone! If they didn't get themselves involved with trading information, then they wouldn't have needed to sacrifice themselves to save me from Sasori! I wouldn't be a rogue from my own country, and-," Izumi stopped herself in order to draw in a sharp breath before turning away. She bit her lower lip and scowled furiously at the memories in her mind of Chiyo and Ebizo.

Naruto walked forward and stood in front of Izumi, who refused to look back at him. "The way I see it," Naruto murmured as he started digging in his pockets. "Lady Chiyo and Lord Ebizo died, not just for you though. They fought to make sure that the Alliance was taken down no matter what. That's what we do in Akatsuki too. We do anything for each other, and we all work towards taking down the Alliance." Naruto finally pulled out a hairpin from his pocket and held it out to Izumi, whose hair was still hanging over her right eye.

"Then they were hypocrites," Izumi murmured bitterly. A glare was shot at Naruto, but he still offered a warming smile. "They tried to stay neutral, and they even retired from their lives as shinobi when Sasori came into power. They taught me, from day one, to stay neutral! They had been through the horrors of war, and they knew I lost my parents during the war!" Izumi faced Naruto and swung her arm to the side in fury, "They should have known better than anyone that war solves nothing! And only brings more violence and hatred!"

"That's true…but as long as the Alliance remains one of the main powers of the world, they'll only continue to spread more pain and hatred throughout the war. I think Chiyo and Ebizo saw that the Alliance had to be taken down in order for this world to have a shot at peace. And maybe they didn't want you to get involved in their plotting because…maybe they didn't want you to end up like them?" Izumi's features softened as her eyes fell to the ground. Naruto closed his hand around the hairpin and moved closer to Izumi. "I'm not going to pretend to tell you what's best Izumi. But if Chiyo and Ebizo wanted you to stay out of the war, then you coming to the Land of Snow…even if it was to try to keep this country out of the war, is getting involved in it. You have two choices: get involved, or don't. But don't try to persuade an entire nation to stay out of the war and pretend you're not getting involved yourself."

Izumi looked over at Naruto. The two locked eyes for the longest time before the puppeteer sighed softly and looked to the ground. A few moments of silence passed before Izumi lifted her head and offered a small smile before laughing softly. "You know…if I didn't know better I'd say Lady Chiyo's spirit just took control of your tongue for a moment." Izumi leaned back, her bangs falling to reveal her right eye and to better show her warm smile. Her anger started to melt away as she remembered all of the good times with Chiyo and Ebizo, her adopted grandparents, and she considered how grateful she was for everything they taught her. The young puppeteer laughed a bit and lowered her head suddenly to hide her tears as she imagined Chiyo reciting everything Naruto just told her perfectly. "She'd tell me the exact same thing you just said. And I guess in a weird way I did exactly what Chiyo and Ebizo did. I got involved in this war while claiming to be neutral."

Izumi lifted her head, turning to Naruto and holding out her hand. The blonde smiled then placed the hairpin in the puppet master's hand.

"Masters Chiyo and Ebizo stood against the Alliance, against all the twisted beliefs they stood for and all the wars, the pain and suffering they caused." Izumi brushed her bangs back away from her face, pinning them back with the hairpin Naruto gave her. She turned to the younger boy and smiled, her whole, beautiful face showing. "I may not like it, but I can't stay neutral in the coming conflict. I guess in the end I don't have a choice…" Izumi wrapped her arm around Naruto's shoulders and pulled the boy closer, "I'll help you Naruto, and join Akatsuki."

"Really," Naruto asked eagerly, a huge grin on his face. "But wait, weren't you just really mad at Akatsuki a minute ago?" Izumi tilted her head to the side and shrugged, despite being a bit surprised by her very sudden change of heart herself.

"I was just angry at everything involving the war," Izumi admitted in a whisper. The puppeteer gave an embarrassed smile and rubbed the back of her neck with one hand, "I guess I just needed to vent more than anything. But in memory of my family, who gave everything for me, I'll carry on their wishes to help take down the Alliance." Naruto beamed brightly at Izumi before he sprung into the air.

"AWESOME! I'll go tell Konan nee-chan and Pervy Sage the news!" Naruto turned around for a split second before spinning back around and taking Izumi's hand to shake it. "And welcome to Akatsuki!" The Jinchuriki turned around and bolted towards the stairs to get to the upper deck. Izumi smiled after the boy before brushing a loose strand of hair back into place.

'_That boy…'_ Izumi place a hand over her heart, which was wrapped in anger, hate, and grief only moments ago, now replaced by happiness and hope. _'He really is something else…'_

* * *

Danzo, accompanied by two ROOT agents, walked through the underground buildings beneath the village towards Orochimaru's laboratory. The Hokage entered the room and saw Orochimaru slowly turn towards him. "Ah, Lord Danzo, you came just in time."

"I assume you have good news Orochimaru?"

The Sannin chuckled and nodded as one of the ROOT agents closed the door. "I believe I've finally perfected this jutsu."

"Show me," Danzo ordered.

Orochimaru nodded before turning his head and motioning towards the darkness, "Kin, be a dear and bring me the test subjects." A young woman with long black hair bowed her head before leaving. After a few moments, Kin brought back two unconscious boys on a pair of stretchers. Danzo recognized them as the pair of shinobi from Kirigakure who arrived during the Chunin Exams.

Orochimaru sneered as he dipped his hands in two separate containers of blood and smeared them over two special looking scrolls. Kin placed the scrolls on the ground, and a large, complicated seal shot out from the ground and surrounded the two boys. Nearby dust and ash from the laboratory rose up and started to encase the two Kiri boys. The dust and ash began to take a shape familiar to Danzo. Orochimaru simply chuckled lowly to himself before the two sacrifices took their final forms. The two ROOT agents gasped as they finally realized what the two figures were.

"Th-they're…"

"The First and Second Hokages," Danzo finished softly. Though the two Kages seemed to be little more than lifeless husks, it was more than enough to have Danzo a bit anxious.

"Behold…" Orochimaru walked forward with a pair of kunai, each with a special tag on the end of them. The Sannin reached through the First and Second's faces and implanted the seal in their bodies. The First and Second's eyes shot open suddenly before they looked around the area carefully. "Say hello to the founding fathers boys."

"Orochimaru," Danzo murmured with a cautious tone. The first two Hokages got out of their stretchers and placed their feet on the ground.

"Don't worry, they're under our control," Orochimaru explained. "Even if they knew everything you've done up to this point, they couldn't act on it Lord Danzo." The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, turned his head towards the Third, with a look of shock on his face.

"Danzo…?" The First Hokage, Hashirama, looked over as well with intrigue. "You've grown old…I take it then that this is the handiwork of my horrid jutsu: the Impure World Resurrection."

"You're correct," Orochimaru replied. "And it's not horrid. It's quite the lovely little jutsu." The Second Hokage looked over at the Sannin who chuckled in a low tone to himself. "I must say, I'm quite impressed with this jutsu. It's such a shame you never finished it yourself."

"And I take it you have finished the Impure World Resurrection," Tobirama asked with a hint of malice in his tone. Orochimaru nodded with a sneer on his face. The Second Hokage's eyes narrowed a bit before his darkened gaze fell to the floor.

"So…they're loyal and obedient to us," Danzo questioned.

"They follow our will Lord Hokage," Orochimaru answered. "There are still some more factors I'll have to play with. Such as the ability to erase their personalities and have them turned into mindless killing machines, and how much control that can be exercised with each specimen. There are a hundred variables I'll have to play with before I can perfect this jutsu for war." Danzo nodded before he looked over at the founding fathers. The first two Hokages stared at their legacy with dark, disapproving stares.

"Continue to run the experiments Orochimaru," Danzo said before he pried his eye off of his predecessors. He looked at his former student, "Don't run your tests on these two. If they're more valuable with their personalities in tack, I don't want them to be ruined."

"Of course." Danzo turned around and exited Orochimaru's laboratory. The Sannin formed a hand sign and a pair of coffins emerged from the ground and encased the first two Hokages. "Who else do we have on our roster dear Kin?"

* * *

The first meeting between the newly created Union's leaders had taken place. Despite the fact that he was confident in his abilities, and the fact that the meeting was taking place in the Land of Lightning, A was less than at ease in a room full of Kiri shinobi and members of the Land of Sky. The makeshift leader of the Land of Sky was a scientist by the name of Shinno. A didn't entirely trust the man, nor did he trust the Mizukage, but he knew that if there was any chance of defeating the Alliance it would have to be through allying the Land of Lightning with other countries outside the Alliance.

"So, shall we begin this meeting," Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage asked.

"Yes, lets," Shinno replied. "First order of business should be our initial strike against the Alliance." The older man nodded to one of his shinobi, who rolled out a map of the Five Countries out on the table before the leaders. "Now, the closest target for us to strike against is Konoha. However, they're also the strongest target for us to hit."

"You're going about this the wrong way Shinno-san," Yagura murmured softly. The older man turned towards the Mizukage. The young Kage placed his finger on the map, on the ocean between the Land of Water and Fire. "We have the advantage. Konoha has to come to us to attack, and the Land of Water has an effective naval force." Yagura shifted his purple eyes to A, "And from what our shared intelligence, the Land of Lightning has a fair navy as well don't you?"

"That's right," A confirmed with a nod. The larger man couldn't suppress the thought of whether or not Yagura knew about the Land of Lightning's navy before they joined forces or not. "But you're forgetting that my country is almost on the Land of Fire's doorstep."

"But the border is small," Yagura pointed out as he slid his finger up to the Land of Lightning. "If you fortify the border, and if we can get the Lands of Hot Water and Frost to help us then the Alliance will have difficulties trying to break through."

"The Lands of Hot Water and Frost have been enemies for the longest time though," Shinno pointed out. "Unless you know something we don't Lord Mizukage."

Yagura looked over and motioned calmly towards the Raikage, "The Land of Frost are allies with the Land of Lightning, due to the fact they're neighbors. The Land of Frost, being a smaller country, rely often on Kumogakure and its people to survive. They'll join our Union without question." Yagura turned away from A and looked at Shinno. "The exact opposite can be said about the Land of Hot Water's relationship with the Land of Fire. The Alliance, as we all know, treats smaller countries about as well as the dirt they're founded on. The Land of Hot Water is no exception. They're forced to trade with the Alliance, and many of the bandit and criminal gangs take residence in the Land of Hot Water in order to act as cheap, expendable spies for Danzo. The Land of Water's Daimyo has already spoken to the Daimyos of both countries, and they've agreed to help our cause."

"Quite impressive," Shinno commended.

"Indeed," A murmured. He knew as well as anyone about the tense relationship between the Land of Frost and Hot Water over the years. While not as bad as the rivalry between the Land of Fire and the other countries outside of the Alliance, it was still enough to cause several skirmishes over the years. "But if we set ourselves up on the defensive, then how to we effectively take on the Alliance?"

"That's my job I do believe," Shinno said as he grinned over at Yagura. "With my people's air superiority, we can travel over the Land of Fire and do all manner of damage to them and then come back to the Land of Water without losing a single man or women in battle."

"That's correct," Yagura nodded. "And if I'm not mistaken, several of your people are excellent medical ninjas. You being no exception Shinno-san." The older man chuckled softly and nodded. A's eyes traveled from the leader of the Land of Sky to Yagura. "We've also heard rumors that our declaration of war has spurred the ninja villages of Takigakure and Kusagakure to strike against the Alliance."

"They'd surely be crushed, being in the heart of Alliance territory and all," A pointed out with a low growl.

"Indeed they would be. But if they can pull the Alliance's attention towards two separate fronts, then it'll make our jobs considerably easier. All we have to do is keep spreading the rumors that we'll help their villages."

"A ruthless tactic Mizukage," Shinno stated with a sly smirk.

A also let out an amused huff, "I agree. So far I'd been thinking you were a coward compared to your predecessor, the Third Mizukage. I see you're just more cautious than he was."

"Lord Saizo Hideyoshi," Yagura spoke softly, his tone sounding almost remorseful. "The greatest Mizukage the Land of Water has ever had so far, and instigator of the last Shinobi World War."

"Yes, as I remember he almost took down the Alliance didn't he," Shinno questioned.

"That's right," A replied. "Together, he and my father, the Third Raikage, signed a treaty, where the two countries wouldn't interfere with each other. We were having our own issues with the Land of Earth, and the Land of Water had already declared war on Konoha." A leaned forward, overlapping his fingers over the backs of his hands. The Raikage closed his eyes and heaved a heavy sigh. "Nobody expected the Land of Water to take Konoha head-on like that. Even the Land of Lightning, the second strongest single country after the Land of Fire, would have had more trouble." A opened his eyes and looked over at Yagura. The Mizukage still seemed to lament the loss of his predecessor. The Raikage shifted his eyes to Shinno, "But Saizo…nobody in the world saw him coming. He was brutal and persistent. Even Danzo, with the mind of Orochimaru, and some members of the Nara Clan, had trouble keeping up with Saizo. Just when the war started to seem to turn in the Land of Water's favor, Saizo himself finally set foot on the shores of the Land of Fire.

"When he joined the battle, along with the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, who he turned into his personal bodyguards, things seemed to become worse and worse for Konoha. At one point, my father even sent a regiment of Kumo shinobi, led by me, to aid Saizo." The Raikage sighed again and lowered his hands on the table as his eyes glazed over. He traveled back to the time when he first met Saizo in person. "Being around that man…was overwhelming. I could sense that he had a terrifying, powerful chakra. He also seemed to command the presence of his followers around him, just by being there. It was almost surreal being around him."

"So, if this man was so great, how did he lose to Konoha, even with a complimentary regiment from the Land of Lightning," Shinno questioned curiously.

A closed his eyes and a furious scowl washed over his face. Shinno tensed up a bit, worrying he had angered the Raikage. "We had gotten word that my father had died in combat against Iwagakure shinobi…we demanded blood, _anyone's_ blood. Saizo had given a speech to his followers, and their spirits were high. The battle was one of the bloodiest battles in shinobi history. It lasted for five nights and six days. We showed no mercy to our foes, and even attacked during the nights when everyone was supposed to sleep. But Konoha shinobi…they proved to be as elite as expected.

"They had two of the Sannin at that point, Jiraiya and Orochimaru, Konoha's White Fang, Sakumo Hatake, and many other upcoming prodigies, namely the Yellow Flash of Konoha. On the fifth night, Konoha got reinforcements from Amegakure and Iwagakure. We were all still ready for battle, but we were tired, and our supplies were running low. My people demanded that I return to the village and take up the title of Raikage." A closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead with his massive hand. "I did so reluctantly…leaving Saizo and his men to fend for themselves."

"We were eventually pushed back to the shores of the Land of Fire," Yagura continued. A and Shinno looked over at the Mizukage as his eyes stared blankly at the Land of Water on the map before him. "Saizo was the last one to get on the boats before he declared that Konoha had won the war and departed."

"Despite losing the war, Saizo seemed to gain a reputation high enough for the Alliance, and Danzo himself to fear the man," A spoke, "Saizo Hideyoshi has been given many titles. While his tactics were brutal and sometimes savage, they were unpredictable and next to impossible to keep up with. Saizo the God of War, or the War Demon of the Hidden Mist were the most favored. He was even believed to be the greatest war tactician in all of history."

"Most impressive," Shinno said as he looked over at Yagura. "How much did you learn from him exactly Yagura-sama?"

"Nothing," Yagura replied firmly. Shinno's eyes lit up with shock, gasping softly. A looked on in silence. "Saizo had no students, no apprentice. He unofficially became leader of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, wielding the Kubikiribocho. When he became Mizukage, he quickly reorganized our military. Or organized, depending on how you saw the careless reign of that fool, the Second Mizukage. During his reign though…he found one urchin from the streets and took him in as a son. He didn't train the boy personally, but his abilities were prominent as he quickly excelled in most shinobi categories. When Saizo-sama died…the sword was given to his 'adoptive' son. That rogue, traitorous scum…"

* * *

"ZABUZA!" The masked swordsmen scowled before he slowly turned around. Obito Uchiha caught up to the killer and threw his arm around the shinobi carelessly. "How's it going buddy? Have any missions lately?"

Zabuza's eyes focused intently on Obito's arm, debating whether or not to tear it off before making eye contact with the Uchiha. "No, I haven't."

"I don't think anyone has had any big missions since the Land of Snow group," Obito rambled on, looking back over his shoulder. Zabuza simply glared at the obnoxious Uchiha, who had practically clung to him since their last mission together. "I wonder if everyone will come back in one piece. I mean I know Konan and Jiraiya-sama went with them, but they're still fighting an entire country ya know?"

"Obito…?"

"Yeah buddy," Obito asked as he turned to Zabuza with a friendly grin. His grin quickly vanished as Zabuza loomed darkly over him with a murderous intent in his eyes.

"Get your arm off me…" Obito sprung a good foot backwards and started laughing nervously, holding his hands up definitively. Zabuza sighed in annoyance before he started to continue down the halls of Akatsuki's hideout. Despite the very recent threat, Obito followed Zabuza anyway, much to the swordsmen's annoyance. "What?"

"Nothin, just deciding to follow you around is all," Obito answered matter-of-factly. "We're friend after all right?" Zabuza sighed again, his agitation growing. Several members of Akatsuki rushed past Obito and Zabuza. Both men looked on curiously at the backs of their comrades before exchanging puzzled glances and shrugging. Zabuza walked forward to follow, with Obito right behind him.

At the entrance of the hideout, a large crowd of cheering Akatsuki shinobi gathered. Obito stared with wide eyes and a puzzled look on his face. Zabuza narrowed his eyes skeptically before heading towards the crowd. Obito followed behind the swordsmen.

At the head of the crowd, the group from the Land of Snow had returned, and was celebrating with their fellow shinobi on a mission accomplished. Several of the older shinobi were greeted with their friends, armed with alcohol and were getting drunk to celebrate.

Obito was a bit unsettled as a drunken shinobi stumbled past him, laughing in an inebriated stupor. Zabuza ignored his urges to cut the drunk down and moved closer to the crowd.

"GRAH! Move it you smelly drunks," a loud voice shouted. Zabuza and Obito both stopped in their tracks, curious as to who the voice belonged to. A group of adults were pushed to the side as Naruto came stumbling out from them, followed by Haku, Neji, Ranmaru, Hanabi, and a new light haired shinobi. The blonde looked up and immediately grinned, "HEY! Obito!"

"Naruto! You're back! And in one piece no less!"

"A little ragged though," Zabuza added as he pointed to the bandages around Naruto's forehead and a few on his face.

"Heh, yeah, that kinda happens when you take on the big bad yourself!" Obito's eyes nearly popped out of his head while Zabuza gasped softly.

"You took on Doto Kazahana," Obito questioned.

"YEP! I took his ass out! Oh, but I had a lot of help from Princess Koyuki and our newest recruit!" Naruto stepped to the side and motioned towards the unfamiliar kunoichi, "This is Izumi. She's from Sunagakure, and we met her in the Land of Snow. She's the apprentice of some legendary Sibling Duo or something…"

"The Honored Siblings of Sunagakure," Zabuza questioned.

"Yes, that's right," Izumi replied.

"That's…impressive. I didn't entirely believe that they actually had an apprentice," Obito admitted. "I'm sorry to hear about what happened to them though Izumi-san."

"Thank you sir."

"I'm Obito, Obito Uchiha. And this ball of sunshine," the spiky haired Uchiha threw his arm around Zabuza, immediately rewarding him with an irate gaze, "Is Zabuza Momochi!"

"Arm. Off. NOW!" Obito sprung away from the swordsmen, giggling to himself as he watched Zabuza carefully.

"The Copycat Ninja of the Uchiha Clan and the Demon of the Hidden Mist," Izumi spoke. "I've heard of both of you, and your abilities. You both are very strong shinobi." Obito grinned and chuckled with his hands behind his head while Zabuza gave a gruff scoff of acknowledgement. "Akatsuki certainly does go after the best now doesn't it?"

"Sure does," Naruto boasted. "That's why they have all of us! We'll take down the Alliance ourselves if we have to!"

Zabuza turned to Haku and the others who hadn't spoken, "Haku, I hope you helped contribute to the mission?"

"Y-yes sir. Hanabi and I took out one of Doto's commanders together." The swordsmen looked at the young Hyuga girl for a moment. He looked back at Haku and nodded firmly, a smile underneath his mask.

"Good work boy."

"Yeah! And Neji and Ranmaru took down another commander together," Naruto added loudly. "And Konan nee-chan took out Doto's right hand goon! And of course yours truly, Naruto Uzumaki took out Doto himself, with help from the princess and our very own Izumi!"

"HEY!" A figure leaped from the crowd, startling the members of Akatsuki. In an instant, Deidara started choking Naruto in a headlock. "I HELPED WITH THAT FIGHT TOO YA KNOW YOU ASSHOLE! You can't just leave me out and not give me any credit!"

"Deidara," a stern voice snapped. The blonde artist turned his head, seeing Konan marching towards him with a grinning Jiraiya right behind her. "Let go of him. NOW!" Deidara huffed angrily before releasing Naruto. The Jinchuriki fell to the floor, gasping desperately for air. Konan sighed and rested her hand against her forehead. "I swear, you two and your bickering is going to be the death of me…" Naruto chuckled softly, getting several quizzical stares from the surrounding shinobi. "And what're you grinning about?"

"Nothing. I'm just…happy I guess!" The confused look on his seniors' faces only worsened as Naruto kept laughing. "I mean us together! It's nice I guess…" Everyone around Naruto then smiled fondly at the blonde. Those who knew him at a younger age had watched the Jinchuriki grow up so fast in such a short amount of time. Konan, Jiraiya, and Obito were all proud of Naruto.

"Eh, we're getting too emotional for my tastes," Zabuza exclaimed, turning his back as he waved his hand about. "I think I'm about to gag."

"Ditto," Deidara murmured. "Naruto my man, you're a hell of a guy, but you're getting too romantic for my tastes." The blonde pointed his finger at his fellow 'artist,' poking the young boy's nose. "Don't let it affect your art!" Deidara then turned and walked away in the same general location as Zabuza. The artist looked at the swordsmen, who returned the stare. The two remembered each other from a skirmish Kiri and Iwa had several years ago. They both grunted in acknowledgement before walking together in comfortable silence.

Naruto watched the two older men leave before he turned back around. Konan patted the boy's head before walking off with Jiraiya, both of whom had to write reports about the mission. "So who wants to do some training," Naruto asked eagerly.

"Ooh, me, me, me, me," Obito exclaimed as he waved his arms around frantically. "All of you kids against me!"

"Getting cocky with age are we Obito-san," Neji questioned with a challenging smirk.

"Nah, just a statement from the world's only Copycat Ninja!"

"Izumi nee-chan," Naruto whirled around to the startled puppeteer, "Wanna help us take down Obito?"

Izumi laughed softly and raised her hands up, "Maybe another time. I don't think it's quite fair for Obito."

"And why not?" All heads turned around to the new voice. A woman with a sizable bust, and blonde hair, wearing the highest ranking robes in Akatsuki walked forward with a curious look in her eyes, followed by a younger woman with short black hair, wearing robes one rank lower.

"Granny Tsunade and Shizune nee-chan!"

The Sannin ignored Naruto's outburst and looked at Izumi, "I heard there was some new blood coming back from the Land of Snow campaign. I'm Lady Tsunade, one of the leaders of Akatsuki."

"I'm Izumi," the young puppeteer said with a bit of a cautious tone. "And I know a lot about you from my teacher, Lady Chiyo, Slug Queen." Shizune's lit up in shock and worry before looking to her mistress. Tsunade threw her head back and started laughing. After a few moments of chuckling Tsunade looked at Izumi with a smirk on her face.

"Well I'd like to see what you can do in a fight. As a leader of Akatsuki, you can't refuse without a valid reason. I think a fight against our very own goofy Uchiha should be a fair test for you."

"If you insist," Izumi replied. The puppeteer turned to Obito and bowed her head. "Would you accept a formal challenge Obito-san?" The spiky haired Uchiha chuckled softly and gently scratched his cheek.

"Well, who am I to say no to a pretty lady?" Izumi smiled and nodded to Obito before they both turned to Tsunade. "Where are we fighting Lady Tsunade?"

"Outside, by the lake. Come on." Tsunade looked at the younger shinobi, "You all can come along of course. You may learn a thing or two by watching them fight." Tsunade turned around and headed for an exit that wasn't cluttered with dozens of shinobi. Shizune, Obito, Izumi, and the younger shinobi led by Naruto followed the female Sannin. "So Puppet Princess, have you ever been in an actual life-or-death fight?"

"I was in the Land of Snow against Doto Kazahana," Izumi replied bluntly. "Isn't this just a simple exercise so you can understand my abilities?"

"Yes, but I want you to treat this like a life-or-death scenario. I want you to hold nothing back." Tsunade looked back over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes, "That goes for you too Obito!"

"Of course Lady Tsunade," Obito said in a tone like a child would reply to her scolding mother. Tsunade scowled before turning her head back forward. Obito gently nudged Izumi's arm, grabbing the young puppeteer's attention. The Uchiha leaned forward, "Hey, don't let her get to you. Just exercise like you normally would in a normal sparring match. No need to go all out right?"

Izumi smiled politely and nodded, "I suppose not." Obito smiled back and straightened up as they approached the exit.

* * *

Danzo looked outside of the window as the rain poured down on Konoha. His single eye looked out into the distance as he stood in his office in silence. The Hokage had seen enough war in his time to know that it was fast approaching. The organization of the Alliance's military was nearly complete, an edge he'd apparently have over the so called Union, who was still working to get themselves organized. There was only one small factor that had to be dealt with on the Hokage's end, and he could sense it approaching.

The door flew open, slamming hard behind the man who entered the room. "I've been waiting," Danzo replied. He turned around and faced Higure, who was dripping wet from the rain. The man's expression was furious. Danzo calmly moved his arm out to the desk were two cups of steaming tea sat. "I hope you like tea." Higure held up a headband to the Hokage and threw it on the desk. The headband splattered and clattered on the wood in front of the Hokage. Danzo looked down for a moment before moving his single eye up to Higure. "I take it you're upset…"

"You send me a headband with a note, calling me a general and you just expect me to calmly walk in and sip tea with you? I know you're not that stupid Danzo."

"Indeed," the old man murmured as he pulled out his chair and sat down. "But I didn't know who else to turn to. Hanzo is set to be the regimental commander of all the forces, Kakashi has been signed up, as has Hiruko from Sunagakure, and Kitsuchi from Iwagakure. And Orochimaru is in charge of our…specialized forces. That leaves a sizable chunk of shinobi to be cared for by another commander. You're a veteran of the last Shinobi World War. You were the student of Kenji Akiko, personal friend of the Yellow Flash, and a member of his specialized squad. Though you're not the leader your sister was-,"

"Shut up," Higure snapped angrily. The veteran clenched his fists and glared daggers at the Hokage. Danzo simply stared back, his single eye calm and unconcerned. "I retired for a reason! I told you I couldn't serve your warped regime any more!"

"Because of the promise you made to Minato and Kushina, correct?" Higure lunged across the room towards Danzo. The Hokage moved in the blink of an eye. The two men stopped with Danzo holding a knife to Higure's bare forehead. The retired shinobi kept his eyes focused on the Hokage. "I'm not defenseless, you should know that. Just as you should know better than to let that famous temper of yours get the better of you."

"Don't talk to me like you knew what we went through," Higure whispered venomously. "You can't imagine what the lot of us went through! Just because you assigned us to the missions doesn't mean you know a damn thing about what happened!"

"I can't help but notice that you stay here, in Konoha though." Higure's eyes twitched slightly with pain. "You stay here to take care of your little niece don't you? Now I wonder to myself, why would you stay here? To take care of Saiki's daughter, yes of course. But you know Akatsuki exists. You could just run off." Danzo's eye sharpened dangerously. "You knew about Akatsuki before it was formed didn't you? That's how Naruto ended up in their hands isn't it?" Higure's eyes narrowed before he took a step away from the Hokage. Danzo lowered his arm, still holding his knife, as he closed his eye. "Though I can't prove that you for sure gave away the child of Minato or Kushina Uzumaki. Until the Chunin Exams, I couldn't even prove that their child survived, and that the Kyuubi didn't just die inside of Kushina or Minato. I had to take your word for everything that happened that night." Higure's eyes softened, and darkened with pain from the past. Danzo's eye opened up slightly as he studied the veteran before him closely. "Now I know that they did have a child, and that he is the new Jinchuriki of the Nine Tails. But I still can't prove that you gave him away less than a week later…but we both know I don't need much more than a suspicious to act."

Higure's eyes lit up as they snapped to Danzo, "You know I won't go down easily." The Hokage's eye closed as a smile slid over his face.

"But what about your precious niece? She's young, and while she has an impressive name growing for herself, I wonder how hard she'll be to take down." Higure growled furiously and jolted forward. Danzo lifted up his arm but stopped when he realized Higure did. They both knew that the same standstill would happen, and that it would be pointless. "There's a large enough group of shinobi without a commander to lead them. I can put your niece into that category, so I can just throw them all out into the front lines and pull the normal Shadow Tactics."

Higure sneered wickedly, "That worked wonders against Saizo didn't it? How far did he get into the Land of Fire again?" Danzo's eye lit up in fury as he lifted his knife up menacingly to the retired shinobi in front of him. Higure's sneer widened, knowing that the former Mizukage was more than a sore nerve to pluck for Danzo. The Hokage sighed through his nose as his expression returned to its calmed state.

"That's another reason I wish for you to lead the Alliance forces. That final battle, you were one of six heroes who managed to turn the tables, and push the great Saizo Hideyoshi back to the Land of Water. Your reputation alone should be enough to command the forces, so you can't make any excuses about nobody wanting to follow you." Danzo's face darkened as he bored through Higure. "And with your niece as leverage, you can't back out without risking her safety."

The retired shinobi scowled furiously as his body tensed. Danzo stared Higure down, clenching his knife tightly. Higure's entire body hardened, frozen in place to prevent himself from attacking the Hokage.

Higure lowered his head in silence. After a moment his arm shot forward, causing Danzo to step back and ready his knife. However, it proved to be unnecessary as Higure's hand clenched tightly around the headband he threw onto the Hokage's desk. Danzo smirked before his eye traveled up to Higure. The man lifted his head up, a look of defeat and shame on his face.

"You win you old bastard…" Higure turned around and walked towards the door.

* * *

The newly instated shinobi walked slowly through the rain as it started to die down, and went towards Konoha's graveyard. He found Saiki and Satoru's tombstones and simply stood over them. The rain came down around him as he stared at his sister's grave in silence. He reached up and looked at the headband in his hand before letting out a sigh.

"I promised you that I'd protect Saiki and your child," he spoke as he turned to Satoru's gravestone. "And I promised you I'd protect Sakura no matter what." Higure turned to his sister's grave. He ran his hand through his soaking wet hair and gave a sad, pitiful laugh as he rested his hand over his face. "But I swore to Minato…and Kushina both that I wouldn't help spread the Wrath of Fire anymore. And…I didn't want Sakura to grow up her life as a rogue ninja." Higure removed his hand from his face. "Was that the right thing to do…? She's your daughter Saiki. What would you have done…? Would we have been better off with Akatsuki?" The only response he got was the rain falling down around him. The shinobi laughed again to himself before shaking his head softly. "You're my younger sister…yet I've always felt lost. As long as I can remember you've always known your path and where you're going. Maybe it was that old bat of a teacher you had." Higure sighed before he sat down on the wet ground, holding himself up on one arm. After a moment he looked up to the sky, the water droplets hitting his face. "I guess I've always known…deep down that I couldn't keep both promises to you two and Naruto's parents as long as we lived in the village. But…I didn't feel like I had the right to remove her from the home that her parents lived in."

Higure lowered his head to the gravestones in front of him, "Was that right of me? Or did I make a mistake? Would you two have wanted to fight for the Will of Fire, like how we said we would? Even if Sakura had to live her life on the run, as a rogue for the rest of her life…would it have been the right choice…to fight for the Will of Fire that Hashirama Senju believed in and laid out for his people to follow and be a criminal to the world…or stay and live in peace while spreading Danzo's darkness across the world. And what if Akatsuki turned out to be nothing more than a pack of criminals anyway?" Higure leaned back, using his other arm for support as he looked back up into the sky. He waited a few seconds in silence before sighing softly. "There were so many questions that went through my head…I didn't know what the right choice was, if there was even a right one to make."

Higure's eyes hardened up into the sky as his tone deepened a bit, "But we all knew that war was never the right choice. The six of us agreed fully on that." Higure closed his eyes and breathed a heavy sigh. "And now because of my choices I've gotten myself and Sakura both involved in this coming war…" Higure rolled his head forward and smiled sadly at Satoru and Saiki. "I promise I'll do my best to keep her safe in the war. And I'm sorry for getting her involved. I'm not sure if you two can hear me in the afterlife…but if you can, tell the others that I'm sorry too…for leading a part in this war…and spreading the Wrath of Fire…"

The newly instated shinobi stood up and continued to smile sadly at his sister and brother-in-law's graves, "I hope you all can forgive me…when I join you one day in the afterlife. That's all I can truly hope for."

Higure pulled the headband up to his forehead and reached behind his head. He tried the headband to his head. As he fastened the knot, he felt his heart weigh heavily in his chest, as if he were a slave again. He gave one last saddened, pleading look to the two gravestones in front of him. After a few moments, he turned around and walked away, heading back towards home.

* * *

**Yeah, holy shit, I'm not dead right? Sorry for being MIA guys, but I've just been going through a lot recently. Not bad at first, then school started getting hectic, but had a very blissful, radiant bright spot. And my break has been…kind of relaxing I guess. Honestly hanging out with my friends at college was more relaxing than staying at home. Weird right? I'm more relaxed at school than at home. But my holiday season has been…less than jolly. I'm hoping to hear from a lot of you reviewers, and all the positive feedback and junk.**

**Just as a heads up, I'm going to post one more chapter for Wrath of Fire, then it's done. I'm doing a sequel, yes, no worries there. Oh, also I know the whole order of the wars thing may get confusing…but I had a late breakthrough that was too good for me to pass up. So the upcoming war is the Fourth Shinobi War, and the one led by Saizo Hideyoshi is the Third War. I know, inconsistent and it makes me a terrible author. I promise in the intro to the sequel I'll go into great detail about the Third Shinobi World War. I just couldn't pass up Saizo's character. Plus, has anyone else noticed the Third Kage of every village seems to be a ridiculous badass? Third Hokage=God of Shinobi, Third Raikage=Greatest Raikage and able to fight a Bijuu by himself, Third Kazekage=strongest Kazekage ever, and Third Tsuchikage=Onoki, who is pretty powerful for a man his age. Probably stronger in his prime I'd wager. But yeah, that concept kinda stuck with me and eventually gave birth to Saizo Hideyoshi.**

**Sorry, done ranting about my brainstorming. Hope everyone out there had happy holidays and I hope you enjoyed the update! =)**


	34. War on the Horizon

"Begin," Tsunade shouted.

Obito popped three kunai out from his sleeve, one between each of his fingers, and threw them at Izumi. The puppeteer jerked her head back and forth between each of the blades. Obito's eyes narrowed as he started forming hand signs. Izumi's eyes observed Obito carefully. The Uchiha launched a large fireball at the new recruit of Akatsuki. Izumi twirled around gracefully before planting her hands and feet on the ground. As the fireball approached, Izumi watched carefully.

Naruto looked on with worry, "Get out of there Izumi!"

Tsunade's eyes narrowed with disapproval. Izumi waited until the last moment to spring up into the air. She narrowly missed the fireball, but her eyes stayed focused ahead. As she cleared the jutsu, she was met with an airborne, and surprised, Obito. The Uchiha cried out in shock as Izumi swung her foot up. Obito raised his arm and blocked the kick before throwing his own foot at Izumi. The puppeteer caught Obito's foot with both hands before pushing her opponent back. The two opponents landed on the ground, crouching on the ground.

'_She's good…she managed to see through that little tactic of mine, and managed to plant chakra strings on my foot when I attacked.'_ Obito activated his Sharingan and looked down, seeing Izumi's chakra strings attached to his foot. He placed each of his fingers on each separate string and used his own chakra to cut each separate string. Izumi's eyes lit up with shock as a small gasp escaped her lips. Obito looked back up at his opponent, his eyes narrowed as he scanned his opponent. _'She hasn't brought out any puppets either. She's trying to get a feel for my tactics and attack patterns, just like I'm doing. She was smart to see through my use of a fireball as a distraction. However…I covered both escape routes…'_

A hand came out through the ground and grabbed Izumi's ankle. The new recruit gasped and snapped her head down to the ground. A second Obito broke out from the ground, with a blue swirling ball of charka in his hand.

'_Th-that's Naruto's jutsu!'_

"Rasengan," Obito shouted as he pushed his attack forward. Izumi's eyes were wide with shock as the jutsu closed in. The puppeteer then bent backwards as the Rasengan narrowly missed her. Obito released her ankle and scowled as he pulled his arm back to try again. He charged, screaming as he shot his Rasengan forward.

Izumi flipped her lower half backwards and stumbled backwards as Obito closed in on her. She threw her arms out towards the Uchiha, and from the sleeves of her new Akatsuki cloak shot out four long puppet arms that wrapped around him. Obito was frozen in place, groaning softly as he tried to push forward. Izumi panted softly with relief as she realized her opponent wasn't going anywhere. The Obito in front of her smirked and then vanished in a cloud of smoke.

'_A shadow clone,'_ Izumi told herself. _'In case if I traveled underground during his initial attack.'_ The puppeteer turned her head towards the real Obito, who was smiling in approval. The puppet limbs started to retract back into Izumi's cloak while the kunoichi herself stood perfectly still. _'He may act the fool…but there's more to that man than meets the eye.'_

"I didn't see that coming honestly, hiding a puppet in your new clothing. Very tricky of you Miss Izumi." The kunoichi chuckled softly before moving a loose strand of hair out from her face.

"You're hardly one to talk about tricky. A shadow clone underground, and using Naruto's Rasengan."

"To be fair, it's actually the jutsu of Minato Namikaze," Izumi's face immediately changed into one of shock, "Naruto's father."

"Th-the Yellow Flash," Izumi asked.

Obito nodded with a proud smile, "Jiraiya's student, my teacher, and Naruto's father. It shouldn't be too surprising that I know the Rasengan is it?" Izumi laughed softly, her face returning to a calmed expression.

"I suppose not. Shall we continue?"

"Well…I guess if you insist." Obito flipped out a kunai and took a battle ready stance. Izumi lifted her arms up a bit, holding them a few inches from her body. _'She's got a puppet of some sort in her robes. There's no bump or bulge…maybe it's a partial summon…or maybe…she's part puppet like Lady Chiyo was.'_ Izumi charged forward. Obito, a bit surprised, moved back a little more, _'She's attacking first? She's got something in mind…'_

Izumi's eyes were half closed and expressionless, reminding Obito of another Uchiha he worked with. The spiky haired shinobi took another hesitant step back, keeping his Sharingan sharp. Izumi lowered herself down as she got closer to Obito. The spiky haired shinobi swung his kunai forward as Izumi fell down to her hands. Obito gasped softly as he felt something hold his body firmly in place. He looked down, and saw that his body was completely tangled up in a series of wooden, lanky limbs coming out from every opening in Izumi's Akatsuki cloak.

"Well…damn," Obito murmured.

"You should've kept your distance Obito-san," Izumi said with a soft tone, her eyes expressionless and staring forward at nothing.

"Well puppeteers don't typically rush forward," Obito pointed out with a sheepish grin. "I wasn't sure what to expect."

"You knew she had something up her sleeve, literally in this case," Tsunade scolded from a distance. The Sannin sighed and rested her forehead against her hand, "This exercise is over." Izumi's puppet limbs loosened around Obito and then started retracting back within her cloak. Obito sighed with relief then stepped backwards. An angry Tsunade walked back towards the hideout with Shizune right behind her.

The younger members of Akatsuki all moved towards Obito and Izumi, with Naruto leading them. The blonde sprung into the air happily just before he got to his two seniors, "That was awesome! Izumi nee-chan you're freaking amazing!" The new recruit turned to Naruto and gave him a nervous, yet flattered laugh.

"Man, when did it get so late," Obito asked as he looked out onto the horizon. The other members of Akatsuki turned their heads and saw the sun setting behind the trees in the distance. _'This'll probably be the last moment of peace that these kids'll have once the war picks up…they probably don't even realize what's about to come…'_

* * *

The Alliance squad, now consisting of nothing but the Konoha shinobi, made its way back to the Land of Fire. The Serpent Five still remained absolutely silent, Sasuke's team brooded, Shikamaru and his partners remained indifferent, and only Sakura's team seemed to be actively talking. Sakura listened to her teammates talk about something tedious.

"Shut your mouths," Kimimaro barked suddenly, and loudly. "We're approaching the Land of Waterfalls. Hanzo-sama's forces should meet us here to escort us back to the Land of Fire. Until then I don't want to hear a word from anyone until we meet their forces." As soon as Kimimaro finished his sentence, a group of shinobi sprung down from the treetops in front of the Konoha shinobi. The pale leader of the Serpent Five stopped in his tracks in front of the gas-masked shinobi.

"Sheesh, do you just have no faith in me Kimimaro," the young green haired kunoichi asked as she removed her mask.

"I just prefer not to leave things up to the enemy Fu-san," Kimimaro replied firmly.

"Yeah, yeah, anyway, we've been told that we're to give you the paperwork you all will need to fill out for the upcoming war."

"We need to fill out paperwork," Shikamaru groaned. "What a drag…"

"It's to make sure that we can better organize our forces," Fu explained. "That way we know who should be with who, and if there are transfers during the war between regiments, then there's more paperwork to be done. Until then this is just telling you what platoons you're gonna be apart of, who'll be leading you, where you'll be stationed, and so on. All you really need to do is write your signature and turn it in back at your village." Fu motioned to one of her fellow shinobi behind her. The man walked up with a large stack of papers and pullet out the first stapled group of them. Kimimaro took the papers and then looked at Fu.

"I don't suppose you have something to write with?" Fu shook her head with a half annoyed look.

The rest of the papers were handed out, and the Konoha shinobi were going through the forms. "I'm apart of Division Five, the Special Ops Division," Fu said. "If you have any questions, basically we're the ones with unique abilities, and the reinforcements that'll be divided up amongst the other divisions if need be. The regiment as a whole shouldn't be on the front lines too much. And our commander is Orochimaru himself. And I only know the specifics of Division Five. The rest you'll have to find out yourself."

"I'm apart of the Fifth Division," Shino stated evenly, with a slight air of pride in his tone.

"I'm apart of the Third Division," Sasuke spoke with a bit of anger. "I'm not good enough to be apart of the Special Ops…?"

"Hey, I didn't assign anyone to anything," Fu snapped back at the young Uchiha. "So don't get pissy with me. At least your sensei is leading that regiment isn't he?" Sasuke huffed then nodded, looking at the picture of Kakashi that came with his forms.

"Well Choji, looks like you and I are in the same group," Shikamaru said as he looked at his chubby friend's forms. Choji looked at his best friend with a relieved smile and laughed softly.

"I'm in the Third Division along with Sasuke," Lee shouted youthfully, fire burning brightly in his eyes, "I promise I won't let you down comrade!" Sasuke rolled his eyes and groaned softly. "Sakura-chan! What Division are you apart of?"

"I'm apart of the First Division," Sakura replied, reading the fine print of the documents.

"Us too," Zaku shouted, pointing to himself and Dosu. "YES! This team remains inseparable!" Zaku raised his hand up to his partner for a high-five. Dosu however, ignored his teammate, as his eyes were wide with confusion as he looked at the last paper. "Yo, don't leave me hangin."

"This…this can't be right," Dosu murmured.

Sakura turned to her teammate, "What's wrong?" Dosu remained silent, unable to contemplate what he was reading. Zaku leaned over as Sakura stepped back on the other side of Dosu. The two gasped softly as they looked at their commander.

"That…that can't be right," Zaku stated. "Your uncle retired didn't he?" Sakura quickly reopened her file and flipped to the last page where it had the name of her commander, and a picture of her uncle's face.

"This…there has to be a mistake," Sakura whispered. "Excuse me, Lady Fu." The Jinchuriki turned her head to Sakura. "Are you sure this is right?" The pink haired kunoichi showed the last page to Fu. The green haired girl looked at the file and nodded.

"Yeah, I heard he was brought out of retirement to be a commander in the war," Fu explained. "It happened just the other day I think. I'm not sure about the specifics, but a few of the older veterans say that your uncle is more than qualified to be a commander in the war." Sakura swallowed nervously. She was lost beyond words, and wasn't sure what to make of the situation. "Is that all," Fu asked slowly. Sakura was snapped out of her trance and nodded softly to the Jinchuriki. "Then we'll be moving out now." The Ame shinobi turned around and started moving into the forest with the Konoha team behind them.

"This doesn't make sense," Sakura murmured to herself, still reading the file on her uncle. "It doesn't make sense…"

* * *

Danzo didn't like the situation he was in at all. He sent a private letter to Sasori and Mao, explaining a new jutsu that Orochimaru has perfected, that could give the Alliance the edge it needs to win the war. All he requested was that a few of his shinobi look over the remains of some of their more famous, and powerful shinobi. However, Mao requested that he and Sasori witness said jutsu before allowing Konoha to grave-rob his ancestors.

Thankfully the Alliance had a jutsu to allow both the Kazekage and Tsuchikage to witness the jutsu from their homes without wasting days of travel. Danzo still felt uncomfortable though, allowing both Mao and Sasori to see such a jutsu. He felt as though it gave away a certain edge he could hold over the two Kages. If it wasn't for Orochimaru's counsel, Danzo would've just had a few of his shinobi sneak into the villages and take what they needed.

Two holograms opened up before Danzo, one of Sasori and the other of Mao. "Thank you Lord Kazekage, Lord Tsuchikage, for taking the time to oversee this."

"_If it gives us an advantage in the war to come, who am I to say no,"_ Mao asked rhetorically.

Orochimaru stepped out of the shadows, wearing a bloody apron and leather gloves, "Ah, I see our honored guests are here." The Sannin pulled the gloves off of his hands and pulled the apron off over his head. "Shall we begin?"

"_Ready when you are Orochimaru,"_ Mao replied. Sasori nodded in agreement.

"This jutsu was created by the Second Hokage, who branded it a forbidden jutsu. With Danzo-sama's approval, I've managed to perfect the jutsu, and will use it for our own purposes." Orochimaru waved to the shadows and stepped to the side. Kin was the first one to step out of the shadows with the first two Hokages walking behind her. Sasori's eyes widened a bit with shock while Mao's narrowed in skepticism. "May I introduce, Hashirama Senju, and Tobirama Senju. Brothers, founders of Konohagakure, and the first two Hokages of our village."

"_The first two Hokages…how did you…"_

"_Impure World Resurrection: Edo Tensei,"_ Mao murmured, cutting Sasori off. Danzo snapped his head to the Tsuchikage, and wondered how he would've known of such a jutsu. Orochimaru simply chuckled as always and nodded. _"I'm curious though…how far you've perfected it Orochimaru-san. And I'd like for you to prove that this isn't merely some genjutsu or some second-rate knock-off of the Edo Tensei that your Second Hokage created."_

"An understandable concern," Orochimaru replied. "That is why I've prepared a demonstration for you." The Sannin motioned to Kin who nodded firmly to him. The young girl vanished in the darkness and then came back with a young child on a stretcher. "This poor lad was apart of a scouting party, on a routine patrol of the border. He got too cocky against a group of bandits and…well he was the only one injured on the squad."

The boy's eyes slowly opened and looked over at the Sannin, "O…Orochimaru-s-sama…?"

"Now, now my child…it's alright." The boy seemed to relax for a bit, and then became confused when he saw Orochimaru smear some blood over a scroll. The Sannin placed the scroll on the ground next to the boy, as a series of markings formed on the ground around him. "Now…this will hurt you…"

"L-Lord Orochimaru," the boy asked, his tone more frightened than before. The ground around the boy, encompassed by the seal on the floor, came up and started encasing him. The boy struggled and cried out for help as his body slowly started becoming consumed by the earth.

"N-no! Stop it! Please Orochimaru-sama!" The boy screamed in terror before his body was finally encased completely with earth.

The mass started to take a different shape of another young boy. Danzo's shot open in disbelief when he started to recognize the shape. The earth finally settled into a final form, of a young boy with spiky hair and two marks on the bottom of his eyelids. The boy opened his eyes and sat up, looking around in confusion. Tobirama, Hashirama, and Danzo all gapped in surprise at the newest resurrected.

"Hiruzen," Danzo murmured.

"Sarutobi," Tobirama whispered, his tone soft and remorseful. "You didn't survive that day…?"

Orochimaru turned to the Tsuchikage and Kazekage, both of whom were convinced by how surprised Danzo was. "As you can see, as long as we have a living specimen, and enough DNA of the deceased, I can bring any person back to life. They retain all of their abilities, even their summons, their personality, fighting style, everything is the same. They're immortal, immune to pain, and can heal from any injury. And the best part of it all is that they're under our complete control. And if need be, I can destroy their personalities and they'll run on their base instincts, and be nothing more than mindless killing machines."

"_Quite the impressive jutsu,"_ Mao admitted. _"And I suppose you've already made a list of candidates for Sasori and I to prepare for you?"_

"My, aren't you on the ball. It's not a long list mind you, but the ones we're requesting are…rather risky to pull off."

"_Such as?"_

"From you Lord Mao, Mu the Second Tsuchikage, and Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage. From Sasori, the Third Kazekage, and the Honored Siblings. We have more on the list, but the most potential candidates are in Union territory, one of whom is Saizo Hideyoshi."

"_If you got him, our victory would be all but assured,"_ Mao spoke. _"I fought him on the battlefield as part of the reinforcements to help Konoha. That shinobi…was more of a demon than a man. If he was immortal and unstoppable, then he could probably take down an entire army himself."_

"But that would require us to get into Union territory, in the Land of Water specifically. Plus we don't know exactly how many shinobi would…oppose using the dead to help us. Which is why Lord Danzo suggested to wait until later in the war, when things were being dragged out and we're desperate for an ending. When little more options are available."

"_I doubt that the tarnished reputation of the Third Kazekage would be a problem, nor would it be an issue to use the traitorous Honored Siblings would concern my people,"_ Sasori stated. _"I'll get Kabuto on retrieval of their DNA immediately."_

"What about you Lord Tsuchikage," Orochimaru asked. "Surely we could bring back the great Mu and the cowardly Onoki back into the war."

"_Unfortunately, the people of Iwagakure are too proud, or too stubborn, and would revolt against such an action. Even if Onoki were the one to be used. If it were up to me though, I'd gladly give you their remains."_

"I understand," Orochimaru replied with a polite bow. Danzo glared over in Mao's direction. The Hokage didn't believe, nor trust Mao's excuse for a second. "That's all I have for the demonstration as of now gentlemen. If you have any specimens for me, please let me know. If there are any new developments, I'm sure Danzo-sama will let you all know." The holographic figures nodded and then disappeared from sight.

The Third Hokage turned to Orochimaru, glaring fiercely at him with his visible eye. Orochimaru met the old man's gaze, unaffected by his superior's stare. "Be cautious of who you bring back from the grave Orochimaru," Danzo threatened. "From now on, I want the DNA of every single shinobi you plan on bringing back to life. No more secrets like Hiruzen, you understand?"

Orochimaru simply clapped his palms together. The three resurrected shinobi all hung their heads in unison as three coffins appeared around them. The lids shut with a noisy, wooden 'thunk' as Orochimaru lowered his arms.

Danzo glared furiously at the Sannin, who remained calm and stared back. After a few moments, Orochimaru smiled and bowed his head to the Hokage, "Of course Lord Danzo. Forgive me, but I believe the genuine shock on your face for the demonstration would help convince Sasori and Mao that this was the real Edo Tensei." Orochimaru lifted his head up and smiled again at Danzo. "But I promise, I'll give you a full list of the shinobi I plan on resurrecting. Even the DNA of those I don't have. You have my word."

Danzo nodded before he turned sharply and walked out of Orochimaru's lab. As the door closed, Orochimaru's smile vanished.

"Every single candidate Lord Orochimaru," Kin asked softly. "What about that…special donation."

"If everything goes according to 'his' plan, then I won't have to worry about Danzo," Orochimaru replied firmly. He turned to Kin and grinned devilishly. "For I will become the Fourth Hokage, and I'll revive all the damned shinobi I wish. Including that old squad Danzo formed."

"The one that the Yellow Flash and the Chakra Princess led?" Orochimaru nodded, cupping his chin with his hand. "As you said my lord, all you need is to ensure that everything goes according to 'his' plans and you'll bring back every shinobi you wish."

"Quite…How are we with setting up the Edo Tensei Grid?"

"The idea is very good Orochimaru-sama," Kin stated. "If we can teach other high-ranking officials within the Alliance the Edo Tensei, in the midst of battle we can spread out the resurrected shinobi, giving each regiment a few extra, immortal, unstoppable troops."

"You're doing it again," Orochimaru sighed. "Telling me what I already know…"

"Forgive me Orochimaru-sama. Anyway, it's difficult to work out the finer details of the Grid. Namely, how much power each summoner will have over the resurrected as oppose to how much power _you'll_ keep over the individual. Not only that, but from what you want to have set up; a grid so that if something were to happen to one summoner and they were forced to release the jutsu, the others could keep Edo Tensei active, unless every member of the Grid were taken out. Setting up such an elaborate jutsu is going to take some time my lord."

"I want it completed before the war starts Kin," Orochimaru ordered. "And choose individuals we can trust. I don't want Danzo to use Shisui's eye against me, so he can take control of Edo Tensei instead of me."

Kin bowed her head down, "I'll work on the Grid immediately my lord. What will you be doing in the meantime?"

Orochimaru grinned and turned his back to the young girl, "I'm going to work on our special…donation. A power such as his deserves little less than perfect." With that said, Orochimaru headed deeper into his laboratory, vanishing in the darkness.

* * *

Jiraiya groaned as he opened a new file to read. The Sannin's least favorite part about being a leader in Akatsuki had to be the paper work. _'Who would've thought leading a band of misfits to overthrow the world would require so much organizing…'_

The old Sannin's head popped up enthusiastically when someone knocked on his door, "Come in! Please for the love of everything come in!" The door opened and Konan slowly entered the room. Jiraiya groaned and slumped over, "You didn't bring me more paperwork did you…?"

"No sensei," Konan replied. "Though it's nice to see you keeping up with your duties." Jiraiya rolled his eyes at his former student's sarcastic remark as he leaned back in his chair.

"What do you need Konan?"

"Well…I've been going through some files, namely the ones we have on Konoha shinobi and…I'll just be forward, I'm looking for one individual in particular, but no such file exists on him."

"Well we only have files on a few shinobi. The shinobi in ROOT or even some in the ANBU we have no such files on."

"It's not a shinobi from either organization." Konan lowered her eyes and sighed. Jiraiya tilted his head slightly with curiosity. "He's a former shinobi. Retired apparently. I wasn't aware that Konoha shinobi were allowed to do that though."

"There have been a few exceptions. If he's not a shinobi, he's not a concern Konan." Jiraiya grabbed the document he was reading before his student showed up and started rereading it. Konan's eyes zeroed in on her sensei. She could tell he was hiding something now.

"But he was a former shinobi wasn't he?"

"But he's not anymore," Jiraiya stated simply, not removing his eyes from the document. "Leave it alone Konan."

"You're hiding something…" Jiraiya's eyes remained fixated on the document in his hand. Konan stepped forward, standing firmly in front of her teacher. "He's younger than me…but around the same age that the Yellow Flash would be if he were still alive." The Sannin's eyes darkened as they shot towards Konan. The young woman remained firm, staring back at her sensei with the same intensity he showed. "I reread his and Kushina Uzumaki's profiles. It says they were apart of a specialized team of six shinobi. Kushina and Minato were both classified as S-rank shinobi in their day. I cross-referenced every other S-class shinobi around that time, and no one else was apart of a specialized team of six Konoha shinobi. So either they're still alive, you nor Tsunade knew who they were, or much more likely, you're hiding the information."

"I told you to leave it alone…"

"Just tell me why you're protecting Higure Haruno. I understand letting Naruto run out his little crush with Sakura, but why are you going out of your way to protect Higure?" Jiraiya slowly placed the document in his hand on the desk. The two adults stared intensely at one another, neither backing down in the slightest.

"He won't join Akatsuki," Jiraiya finally spoke. Konan folded her arms over her chest. The white haired man knew that's what she was going to get to eventually, but Jiraiya knew better. "He's a…very dedicated man. He's trapped in Danzo's world."

"Why doesn't he just rebel like you and many other Konoha shinobi have," Konan asked firmly. "He can bring his niece as well to Akatsuki."

"It's more…complex than that," Jiraiya replied. "He can't just pick up and leave with his niece. I can't explain it to you in a way you would understand Konan…"

The blue haired woman sighed heavily through her nose. Jiraiya simply lowered his eyes to his desk. He hoped his former student would leave the room quickly. Konan dropped a file on Jiraiya's desk and silently walked out of his office. The Sannin narrowed his eyes before he picked up the folder and opened its contents. The older man's expression lit up in shock when he saw Higure Haruno's name as a division commander for the Alliance. Jiraiya continued to stare at the file wordlessly before he placed his large hand over his eyes.

Jiraiya breathed a heavy sigh as he rubbed his brow with his hand, "Oh old friend…what'd they threaten you with…?"

* * *

Sakura opened the door to her home and quickly stepped inside, "Uncle Higure? Are you home?"

"In the kitchen," a voice called out. Sakura closed the door and hastily removed her shoes before rushing to the kitchen. Higure stood in front of the stove, cooking something in a skillet and wearing a pink apron. He sighed and turned to Sakura with a half-pout look on his face, "I need to do laundry again. It's very undignified for a man to be wearing so much pink, ya know?"

"Uncle Higure…what's this about you being a military commander," Sakura asked, ignoring her uncle's remark.

"Then again I guess it's not that bad of a color. I mean you and your mother pull it off pretty well after all."

"This isn't funny!"

"Hey, I've never once made fun of you or your mother's oddly colored hair," Higure snapped. Sakura slammed her fist into the doorframe, causing it to crack and break under the force. Higure stared silently at his niece's fist and he noticed she was shaking slightly. His green eyes traveled over to Sakura, who had her head hung down, using her hair to cover her face. "It was something I couldn't say no to…"

"NO!" Sakura's head whipped up suddenly. Higure gasped a bit when he saw that Sakura was fighting back tears, yet her eyes held an unyielding determination. "No more of this half-truth you always give me about your past or about anything secret! I deserve an answer this time! Especially if you're supposed to be my commander on the battlefield!"

Silence filled the Haruno household as the only two occupants stared at one another with their same green colored eyes. Higure was the first to cave, sighing with defeat before turning around and leaning against the counter and crossing his arms over his chest.

"The Alliance needed one last commander. Danzo saw me as the best choice to fill in that position, and had the perfect way to force me out of retirement." Higure turned his head towards Sakura. The pink haired girl's eyes softened in realization as she placed her hand over her chest. A heavy weight of guilt pressed down on her heart.

"W-well…you do have plenty of battle experience, a-and you are an apt leader from what you've told me," Sakura stated, her tone laced with nervousness. "I-I'm sure with your leadership will save a lot of lives in this war in the long run Uncle." Despite her trying to rationalize it, Sakura still felt guilty. Whether she liked it or not, she was the tool used to blackmail her uncle into servitude, and out of retirement.

"It's mostly just so Danzo can have one last petty victory over me…he wants to make sure that I'm kept in line, and that he can control me." Sakura's eyes fell to the floor, falling silent once again. Higure did the opposite and looked up at the ceiling as his eyes narrowed angrily. "He hates the idea of having a valuable tool laid out in front of him that he can't use. That man…sometimes I wish I was never apart of this stupid village."

Sakura's face lit up suddenly at her uncle's words. Immediately her mind went to images of Naruto, and his friends when they were undercover in the village. Despite their oddities and their often clashing personalities, they seemed to get along, and they were close, like a family. In her mind, Sakura was reminded of her, her teammates, and her uncle from remembering Naruto's interaction with his teammates, and the blonde's stories of his 'clan' that he would tell her when they were together.

"Um…Uncle Higure…" The older man turned his head with a curious look on his face. Sakura was nervous as could be even thinking her treacherous thoughts. The pink haired girl shuffled about nervously before looking her uncle in the eye. "What…what would you say to…um…" Higure looked a bit concerned for his niece, but waited for her to finish nonetheless. Sakura took in a deep breath and thoughtlessly blurted out what was on her mind, "Joining Akatsuki!"

Silence hung heavily in the air. Higure's only expression was one of stunned shock. Sakura herself was a little surprised with herself for such a bold suggestion, and that she shouted it no less. After a few long, awkward seconds, Higure threw his head back and laughed out loud. Sakura was again surprised as she took a hesitant step back.

Higure stopped laughing, smiling as he stared at the ceiling, "That's certainly an option isn't it…?" The older man lowered his head and stared forward with a smile and a spark of fire in his eyes Sakura had never seen before. Was that the Will of Fire her uncle talked so much about? Higure tightened his hand on his arms a bit with anxiety that he could scarcely contain. He turned to Sakura, his smile and fire remaining, "Are you sure that's an option you can follow through with?"

Sakura nodded firmly, "Yeah. I…I may have to bring it up with my friends, Zaku and Dosu though. They're my brothers. I can't leave them without giving them some kind of heads up."

"I understand," Higure replied. "This is…very sudden Sakura."

"I know…but I think this is what we need to do…ya know?"

"I understand…but before we decide anything, I think we need to sit down and talk about this. This is going to affect our whole lives Sakura. We're going to have to live on the run from the most powerful and largest shinobi force in the world. We don't even know if Akatsuki has a chance of survival." The pink haired girl froze in place. She hadn't considered that before. Her suggestion was just a spur-of the moment decision if anything. Sakura looked at her uncle and saw that his spark of life had been replaced by his regular calm, thoughtful expression.

"Alright Uncle…we can talk about it." Higure nodded then took off his apron before walking towards the living room with Sakura next to him.

* * *

The Raikage stood with Shinno over a map of the mainland, making their preparations for the coming war. The two leaders looked up when another two figures entered the room. One was Yagura, and the other was his bodyguard Kisame. A scowled slightly, annoyed that the Mizukage didn't trust anyone still. Then again, the Raikage knew he wasn't much different, except in the fact that he trusted his powers more than Yagura's apparently.

"We've gotten word back from the Land of Iron. They still persist on staying neutral in this war."

"I told you it was a lost cause," A growled. "You should just leave them alone Mizukage. I doubt the ultimatums you deal out wouldn't go as far as the ones your predecessor would give his enemies."

"I'm a Mizukage of my own right," Yagura replied calmly. "I'll remind you that I didn't inherit this position like some people in this room."

"Mizukage, Raikage, please," Shinno snapped. "We don't need to be fighting amongst ourselves, do we? The Alliance is going to be troublesome enough." A huffed while Yagura continued into the room, standing at the conference table and staring at the map.

"Will setting up supply posts be necessary," Yagura questioned. "With Shinno's aerial prowess, his troops could drop in supplies wherever we need it."

"But that would take time for our troops to send word back to HQ, and then more time for Shinno's forces to mobilize," A pointed out. "Plus we need the bulk of Shinno's forces to stay available in the fight. His aerial technology will give us an edge over the Alliance. And since the Land of Snow is staying neutral as well, the Alliance has nothing on us in the sense of technological resources."

"I also…have a slight issue with Shinno's entire 'country' being it's own regiment, led by him and with none of our men in his regiment, Raikage."

"Mizukage, if I didn't know any better I'd say you didn't trust me," Shinno said mockingly.

"Let me talk to him," A snapped as he stepped away from the table. Yagura's emotionless eyes turned to the Raikage before he and Kisame moved towards him. A leaned down and whispered lowly to the Mizukage, "Look, Shinno's forces are powerful, there's no doubt about that. But he and his people are little more than fodder to take out as many of the Alliance's forces as they can before they're wiped out. And with their aerial superiority, they can take out a lot."

"Sacrificing one of our 'unique' weapons for a greater cause," Yagura murmured. "You're trying to use Saizo-sama's tactics?"

"They worked," A replied.

"We also lost a sizable portion of our strongest clans with a kekkei genkai, thus lowering our overall power to try to overthrow the Alliance. The price was too high, plus they didn't work. If they worked, you and I wouldn't be having this discussion on how to take down the Alliance."

"Listen, the Land of Sky's greatest resource are their aerial prowess. With that, we've got an edge. But the bulk of their shinobi forces lack the same power and abilities our shinobi have. They'd hold us back if we mixed them amongst our troops. Plus Shinno knows how to use his troops and technology the best."

Yagura sighed and rubbed the side of his head with his fingertips, "I don't like it…but fine. We'll let Shinno play his little game…" A nodded then headed back to the war map with Shinno.

"Are you sure this is okay," Kisame asked. Yagura nodded as his eyes glazed over dully and his voice deepened.

"Shinno has larger goals than just destroy the Alliance," the possessed Mizukage whispered. "He intends to betray this Union and take over the world. Also he has a bit of a 'trump-card' which will prove useful while he plays his game."

"So we let Shinno and the Alliance duke it out and move in over their corpses towards our victory," Kisame grinned devilishly. "That's just like Saizo-sama's tactics if you ask me."

"Who do you think taught him?" Yagura's eyes got a bit of shine back to them before he headed back to continue discussing the war with the fellow Union leaders.

* * *

Naruto sighed as he lied on top of a stack of wooden crates full of supplies as the adults move all around the base, getting the organization ready for war. The younger members of Akatsuki, the kids around Naruto's age group, had been asked to stay out of the way while the adults worked. The blonde Jinchuriki and his friends all hung around the crates, watching the adults run by.

"This bites," Kiba murmured angrily. "We can help too can't we?"

"They think we'll just get in the way," Neji explained as he and Hanabi watched two Akatsuki members discussing where they were needed. "For some of us that isn't far from the truth."

"Well how about we do some training," Ino suggested, tossing her hand about lazily.

"Lady Tsunade and the others don't want us to kill each other before we're deployed," Tenten replied with her hands behind her back as she leaned back against the crates.

"Screw what they say," Kiba shouted. "All the adults are gonna be too busy to stop us anyway!"

"It's more than that." The young feral boy and some of the other kids looked over at Gaara. The redheaded Jinchuriki stared ahead, at nothing specific, "With war so close, both the Alliance and the newly formed Union will have scouts all over the place to claim as much territory as they can. If we're outside causing a commotion, that gives either side a chance to attack us before we're ready. Plus we don't exactly want to give the Union trouble if we can avoid it."

Kiba huffed and gave Gaara a look of annoyance while Tenten and Ino smiled gently at him. Neji nodded softly, "Gaara's right Kiba. Don't cause a fight."

"Especially not near all of the supplies," Haku added as he glanced back over his shoulder at the wooden crates, some of which he was sitting on with Ranmaru. The black haired boy turned his head towards Neji and Gaara, who both had their arms crossed and eyes forward, "Does anyone know where we're all being deployed? Are we going to be separated or can we all stay together in this group?"

"Lady Konan told me that most of Akatsuki's forces will be moving from outpost to outpost regularly," Hanabi spoke up softly. Since coming back from the Land of Snow, Hanabi had volunteered as Konan's little-helper to fit in better within Akatsuki's ranks.

"Depending on each person's abilities, we'll all be divided up accordingly," Neji added. "With Kiba's nose, mine, Hanabi, and Ranmaru's eyes, we'll probably be posted up closer to the battles so we can predict the enemy's movements better. Tenten's weapons expertise will probably put her in a supply outpost of some sort. Ino's sensory techniques will more than likely land her in a few scouting squads to better sense enemy movement so that we know where to avoid the bulk of enemy forces."

"Well don't be so eager to separate us all just yet fearless leader," Kiba growled bitterly. He didn't like the idea of being away from all of his friends in a time of war. Neji's eyes lowered a bit before he lifted his head up to where Naruto rested.

"You're being awfully quiet for once," Neji called out to Naruto.

"Sorry," Naruto replied softly. This caused the others to turn around and look up as well. "I just dunno how I'm gonna make it without you guys." Naruto rolled over onto his elbows and looked down at his friends with an almost pained smile. "Most of you have been with me since I was a kid. You all are all my best friends, and if we're all apart…I don't know…I just don't like that we'll all be apart from each other while in constant danger."

The group of young shinobi fell silent. They were all deep down fearing the same thing, but hearing it from Naruto caused it all to sink in much deeper.

"What're you kids all pouting about?" The younger group looked up, seeing Hana walk over carrying a crate with Itachi behind her.

"Nothing sis, just leave us alone," Kiba snapped.

"You all look pretty down in the dumps about something," Itachi pointed out. Kiba glared angrily at the Uchiha clansmen.

"We're just kind of upset about the fact that we'll all be separated when everyone is deployed for the war," Naruto said.

"We were fine until you got all depressed about it," Kiba growled.

"You all do know that there were, and still are, some that are in favor of keeping you kids out of the war right," Itachi asked. Some of the kids all turned their heads towards the older clansmen. "Jiraiya-sama said if you all wouldn't just find some way to cause trouble in the war even if we left you all somewhere, he'd be in favor of it."

"Yeah, and you kids wanted to help so badly," Hana added, pointing a finger at the group. "So don't go complaining when you get your way."

"We don't mind helping at all," Haku spoke up softly. "It's just…we don't know how it's going to be when we don't know how our friends are doing."

"That's just one of many challenges you'll face in war," Itachi said gently with an apologetic smile on his face. "And it's not like we'll be throwing you all in with unfamiliar faces. Each of you will have someone whom will watch over you, and make sure that you're doing your jobs."

"Hey, we're perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves! We don't need babysitters!"

Hana snapped her angered eyes at her younger brother, and pulled part of her upper lip up in a snarl, "What's wrong with you Kiba? Stop being such a whiny pup!"

"Don't tell me what to do! You're my sister, not our mom!"

"I've never claimed to be mom and you know it," Hana snapped as dropped the crate she was holding to point her finger dangerously close to Kiba's face. At this point, the rest of the Akatsuki members had fallen silent and stared awkwardly at the two Inuzuka siblings.

"No, but you sure as hell try to act like her! And if it wasn't for your boyfriend's clan mom would still be alive!"

"That was Konoha's fault, not Itachi's," Hana shouted as she grabbed Kiba by the collar of his shirt. "If that's why you've been avoiding me this whole time then you're just a little baby who I don't think is ready for war!"

Kiba quickly smacked his sister's hand away and then sprinted away from her and his friends. Everyone turned and watched as the young Inuzuka boy disappeared in the crowd of rogue ninjas. Hana sighed heavily as her face twisted with regret, but the anger still lingered. Itachi placed a supportive hand on Hana's shoulder.

"Come on," Hana murmured to her boyfriend. She looked up at the younger kids and offered them the sorriest smile she could muster, "Sorry that you guys had to see that. And I hate to ask this of you all, but Itachi and I still have work to do to prepare for the war. Could you guys maybe send someone to check up on Kiba?"

"No problem," Naruto offered as he hopped off the top of the crates he was lying over. "I'll give him a good beating!"

"I appreciate the offer Naruto, but beating him isn't going to fix it."

"I wasn't offering cause you two fought," Naruto stated. "I was gonna beat him up because he still doesn't trust Itachi! I mean Itachi has done more for Akatsuki and all of us than most people in this organization!"

"There's distrust amongst most people in Akatsuki," Itachi pointed out as he crossed his arms over his chest. "That's what happens when you get a group of rogue ninjas to form into a small militia band to overthrow the world. We're working with some of the most dangerous criminals in all of history. Any shinobi would be wary of a few of their 'teammates' in a group like this."

"But we all swore to join together to take down the Alliance and try to bring the world to peace," Naruto shouted defensively. "I don't care what anyone did in the past, if you're a part of Akatsuki, then you're an ally! If we all go around mistrusting each other, then we're no better than the Alliance!"

The group fell silent again at Naruto's bold words. Itachi sighed softly. He agreed with Naruto on some level, but the boy was still naïve on how the world worked, and how certain people functioned.

Everyone was snapped out of their own individual thoughts when Gaara started to slowly walk away. Before anyone could ask, the redhead simply spoke, "I'll take care of Kiba."

The shaggy haired boy sat on the bank of the lake near Akatsuki's hideout. He stared vacantly at his reflection, trying to empty his head and forget about Hana and her boyfriend, and he tried to repress his memories of his mother. She was a hard woman no doubt, but she was always loving and caring, as every mother should be. Kiba's nose alerting him to the dry scent of Gaara as he approached.

The Jinchuriki walked forward and stood next to Kiba, his arms over his chest as he stared forward at the horizon. The Inuzuka remained silent, but grew slightly angrier than before. He hardly knew the Jinchuriki, and he knew that the redhead was going to try to 'talk some sense' into him as Hana had tried over and over again. After a few seconds of silence, Gaara took off his gourd and set in on the ground next to him before falling back on his rear to sit next to Kiba. The Inuzuka stared at the water while the Jinchuriki stared forward still.

"What," Kiba finally said after a minute of silence between the two.

"Itachi is a comrade, and a member of Akatsuki you know," Gaara spoke. Kiba rolled his eyes and angrily huffed.

"What do you know about comrades? You didn't have a clan that was wiped out in an instant by Konoha…"

"No…but everyone in our group knows loss."

"Do they have a reminder of the people who wiped out their family in front of them every single damn day?" Gaara shook his head silently as Kiba glared at him. The Inuzuka snarled before whipping his head back around and staring intensely at the lake.

"Tell me about what happened to your clan, Kiba," Gaara softly requested. Kiba tensed up, gripping his jacket tightly. Gaara waited before moving his eyes over to look at his friend.

"The Inuzuka Clan was used by Konoha for tracking and infiltration. Their noses were comparable to that of any ninja hound. Every one of us had a trusty hound with us from a young age, which grew up with us. It was the tradition of our clan. I had my own puppy, named Akamaru, given to me by my mom. I did everything with that dog. He was my closest friend…hell, he was apart of me. Then for whatever reason, Danzo ordered the execution of the Inuzuka Clan, calling us all traitors. That's all I know of the situation, because Hana claims that's as much as she knows. Konoha shinobi came to the Inuzuka compound, led by the bulk of the Uchiha Clan, and started killing everyone, man, woman, child, and dog. My mother forced Hana and I to leave, but before she could join us, she was surrounded by members of the Uchiha Clan. Mom, her faithful companion Kuromaru, Hana's dogs the Three Haimaru Brothers…even Akamaru, stayed behind to fight the Uchiha Clan and Konoha to allow me and Hana to escape."

By this point, Kiba bit his lip to stay silent as his shoulders began to shake. He tried his best to fight back his tears and sobs in front of another person. Gaara remained silent and stared with sympathy at Kiba before turning his head back to the horizon.

"I'm sorry for your loss Kiba. I truly am." Kiba huffed as he wiped his tears on his sleeve before lifting his head up enough to stare at the ground. "I don't know what my mother was like…all I know is that apparently she wished for me to exact revenge on Sunagakure, and held no love for her youngest child." Kiba's eyes widened before turning his head towards Gaara in shock. The redhead remained stoic as he continued, "My siblings hated me, my father was a member of the Kazekage's personal guard, and my uncle, who was the only person I thought cared for me, tried to kill me." Kiba's mouth fell open slightly. He was horrified by the terrible family life that the Jinchuriki had. "I was asleep…lost in the darkness due to the lack of love I received in my life. It wasn't until I fought with Naruto and that other man that I managed to wake up.

"He and I fought each other until we were ragged and nearly broken. Yet even at the end, when Naruto was exhausted and his body was about ready to fall over, he stood up on his feet. He stood tall and walked towards me, who lied broken and beaten on the ground, unable to even move my fingers." Gaara looked up into the blue sky and white clouds as his mind took him back to that moment.

"_N-no! Stay away!" Naruto ignored Gaara's pleas and continued towards the redhead with hardened eyes._

_The redhead could only tremble as he tried to force his body to move away. But he was numb, as if his whole body was glued to the earth itself. Gaara's mind reeled as he wondered what force compelled this boy to stand up and push onward. How was he any different, if not better than Gaara?_

_Before he knew it, Gaara was covered by the blonde's shadow. The redhead looked up with fear, expecting hatred and malice for putting the pink haired girl in danger, but instead he saw pity, and sorrow in the blonde's eyes._

"I questioned to myself what kept Naruto going," Gaara continued. "What was it that the boy had that kept him so dedicated? I spent my life fighting and living only for myself, and I was feared by child and veteran shinobi alike. I felt like the most powerful being in the world, yet I was lying in the dirt unable to move, while this child was able to stand on his feet and walk towards me without fear. Despite the fact that I was his enemy, and I threatened his precious person, he still felt sympathy for me, and tried to save me."

Gaara's mind took him back to when Naruto was approaching him on the ground. A smile came across his face, "I can see it so clearly now…" Gaara's mind envisioned Naruto's friends lifting him up off the ground and helping the boy walk towards the redhead when he lied on the ground.

"It was all of you who saved him from the darkness, as he saved me from the darkness. It was all of you that motivated him and pushed him to keep fighting when he was about ready to collapse." Gaara turned his head back to Kiba, his eyes showing sympathy towards the young Inuzuka. "I want nothing more than to be able to see my brother and sister, and apologize to them for every wrong I had ever committed against them. I want to look my father in the face and show him the value of friendship, despite his teachings of fighting for the village and oneself." Gaara stood up to his feet as Kiba lifted his head up, captivated by his words. "I'm on the opposite side of my own family in this war…I want nothing more than to show them how I've changed, to show them I'm my own person, and not that terrible monster inside of me. Your last remaining family is right here, on the same side with you. I know you won't always see eye-to-eye with her, but you shouldn't push her away."

Kiba was left speechless by Gaara's words. The redhead lowered his head and smiled gently at Kiba. "I'm going back to the hideout to spend a little more time with our friends. You don't have to come back immediately, but think about what I said." Kiba nodded slowly and Gaara nodded back. The redhead turned around and started heading back to the hideout, leaving Kiba to reflect on his situation.

* * *

It was only one week until the Alliance set out for war. The village was filled with hundreds of shinobi from Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and Amegakure, as the Divisions and squads were being formed. Despite the fact the village was packed with so many shinobi running around all over the place, Sakura, Dosu, and Zaku managed to find some seclusion near a small river near the training fields.

None of them liked the idea of going to war, even if they were all in the same Division led by Sakura's uncle. They all knew that their lives were going to be radically uplifted by this war.

"So," Zaku said, trying to make conversation before throwing a pebble into the river.

"Yep," Dosu murmured as he fiddled with his Melody Arm. Sakura sighed softly as she kicked her feet gently in the water.

Her and her uncle had decided that if the opportunity presented itself, that they'd go rogue and seek out Akatsuki. She had no problem with leaving, despite the fact they would be fighting against the village Sakura's parents had fought for their whole lives. Higure had told her time and time again that his friends, sister, and brother-in-law, tried time after time to find a way to change Konoha without uprooting thousands of lives, and causing another war. Now that a war was a week away, Higure told Sakura that Akatsuki may have been the last hope for the world.

Sakura's only regret would be leaving Zaku and Dosu behind. These two were her family, her brothers. She wanted to tell them more than anything, but she wasn't sure how they'd react to her going rogue.

"Hey guys…" Zaku and Dosu turned their heads to Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi shifted nervously for a few moments, "How do you think of Akatsuki? How do you think they'll impact the war?"

"Akatsuki is a crafty organization," Dosu stated as he went back to toying with his Melody Arm. "They're certainly skilled and they know what they're doing. As for how they'll impact the war…that remains to be seen I suppose." Sakura nodded then turned her head to Zaku. The black haired boy lied back in the grass and looked up at the leaves in the trees.

"They got a lot of good shinobi in their hands. I don't hate them like everyone else in the village does just cause they're full of traitors and criminals. I dunno how they'll impact the war, but I'm kinda curious to see it."

"Well…I was just wondering," Sakura murmured. The two males turned their heads in curiosity towards Sakura.

"Is everything okay," Dosu asked. Sakura nodded, fighting against every instinct to tell Dosu and Zaku her plans to go AWOL.

"Hey, punks," a playful voice called out. The three turned their heads, seeing their sensei Anko coming out of the bushes. "Danzo and Orochimaru have some kind of announcement and they want everyone there." The three kids nodded and stood up quickly and followed their sensei back to the village.

* * *

Gaara reentered the hideout and was a little confused when he saw everyone heading towards the same direction. "Gaara," Haku called out. The ice-user moved through a few groups of people before grabbing the Jinchuriki's arm gently and guiding him in the same direction as everyone else. "Good timing, the leaders want everyone present for their speech."

"When was this announced," Gaara asked.

"Not too long after you left, but I told everyone that I'd wait on you. How's Kiba?"

"He should be fine. He just needs time." Haku smiled and nodded before he started moving faster through the sea of Akatsuki with Gaara behind him.

* * *

Sakura, Dosu, Zaku, and Anko all arrived on the main road in Konoha, where the entire center of the village was filled, and citizens and shinobi alike were leaning out of windows, or standing on crowded rooftops. The Alliance leaders themselves stood at the top of the Hokage's Mansion, overlooking the thousands of people in front of them.

Sakura looked around the crowds to see if she could find her uncle. Finally, she saw him standing on the edge of a nearby building. Without saying a single word, she moved towards said building and made a couple of jumps up it, standing next to her uncle.

"What's going on," Sakura asked. Higure shrugged, keeping his cold, hardened eyes on Danzo and the other Alliance leaders. Sakura examined what her uncle was wearing, and was a bit confused. He wore a Konoha headband, which Sakura had only seen him wear in old pictures of him, a Jonin vest, and a long brown half-skirt that covered his legs and stopped just above the ankles. Sakura had never seen her uncle in any type of battle-attire before in real life, and was thrown off a bit from it.

Sakura turned her head when she heard someone behind her. Zaku and Dosu approached the two family members. "Mind if we join," Zaku asked.

"Just don't talk," Higure replied, "I want to know what this is all about…" Zaku and Dosu nodded as they stood behind Sakura and Higure, looking at the Alliance leaders in anticipation.

* * *

Haku and Gaara managed to find their friends, who greeted them quietly before turning their eyes to their leaders, who stood before the mass of people. Naruto smiled with his arms crossed, and waited anxiously. On the makeshift stage, his godfather Jiraiya stood in the same pose before catching the blonde in his vision. The two grinned at each other, as if they were thinking the same thing.

"I'm no good with speeches," Nagato murmured with a soft smile on his face.

"Then just stand there and look pretty," Konan advised jokingly. "Besides, they only wanna hear Jiraiya anyway." Nagato huffed in agreement as he stared at his sensei with admiration. He knew that Akatsuki had come a long way, and that this was their chance to take down the Alliance. It was their dream since the days when he, Konan, and Yahiko were kids being trained by Jiraiya.

Yahiko stood in the center of the Akatsuki leaders, holding his sword out in front of him, the tip imbedded in the ground and both hands on the handle of the blade. On his right were the two Sannin, Jiraiya and Tsunade, and on his left were his childhood friends, Konan and Nagato. The founder of Akatsuki gripped his sword and shouted, "Attention!"

* * *

The leaders of the Union stepped out of the main building of a military settlement a few miles outside of Kumogakure. The armies all cheered for their leaders, A, Yagura, and Shinno when they saw them standing on the balcony overlooking the armies.

"Today," the Raikage roared as he lifted both of his massive arms up into the air. The armies fell silent on the booming voice of the Raikage, "We set out to prepare for war against the Alliance!" The masses screamed and cheered at A's words. "For years, Konohagakure has gone around instigating wars, conquering entire countries based on one man's twisted beliefs! I say NO MORE! Today, the Union takes a stand against the Wrath of Fire! To take down the Alliance and throw Danzo Shimura into the deepest, darkest pits of hell!" The canyon roared with thousands of men and women screams and cries of agreement.

* * *

Danzo lifted his hand up into the air slowly, causing the entire village to fall silent. The Hokage lowered his arm to his side, "Today is the beginning of another war. A war against the two major countries outside of the Alliance: the Lands of Water and Lightning. I know many of you are reluctant to fight this war. I understand your wariness of constant fighting. I have lived through every major war Konoha has ever been through. But I promise all of you that this is the war to end all wars. When the Union falls, the Alliance will reign supreme, and peace shall flourish throughout the world!" Citizens and shinobi alike cheered at the Hokage's words. Danzo smiled a bit before continuing, "We have the greatest shinobi in the world fighting on our side! We have Orochimaru of the Legendary Sannin, Kakashi Hatake, the White Fang of Konoha, Hiruko the Scorpion, Kitsuchi of the Stone, Higure Haruno, the Chakra Leech-,"

"The what now," Zaku questioned, thrown off completely by Higure's alias.

Higure shuddered and his eye twitched as he felt three sets of baffled eyes on his back, "I didn't come up with the name so shut up!"

"And Hanzo the Salamander," Danzo finished. "These men will be leading you all to victory in the war!" Again, the crowds cheered loudly for their Hokage.

* * *

"We all know that this war is going to be difficult," Yahiko spoke to the Akatsuki. "We're a small militia against two halves of the world. Many of us…we know we won't make it back. But that's what we're here for! We're here to change the world, to make a difference! To tear down Danzo's regime and his Wrath of Fire! All of us have been wronged by the Alliance, by a war that Konoha or its allies started. We've all lost someone precious to us. This is our chance…this is our opportunity to strike back at Konohagakure and the Alliance, to make them pay for their crimes!"

"Hell yeah," Naruto shouted enthusiastically. His friends soon joined in and began to cheer, being the only ones who were. All of Akatsuki stared at the group of kids and murmured to themselves.

Zabuza stared down from a higher vantage point at the kids, focusing on Haku and how the boy was screaming and cheering. The swordsmen huffed softly to himself as he realized how drastically those kids had changed Haku. Zabuza would never admit it, but he was happy that Haku had found a group of friends that he grew so close to.

"Anyway," Yahiko murmured as he glared at the group of kids. "We can't take on the Alliance or the Union in a direct fight! So we're relying on sabotage, espionage, and any other dirty trick we can use to try to overthrow Danzo. The Union is not our immediate target, but they won't hesitate to attack us. And we don't need the Union to become a repeat of history!"

* * *

"But you will not be alone in this fight," Danzo stated. "Using a jutsu created by my predecessor, Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage, Orochimaru has perfected a jutsu that will tip the scales in our favor!" The Sannin's eyes widened a little bit before turning them to the Hokage.

'_What are you thinking old man…'_ Orochimaru's thoughts were full of malice and outrage. Did Danzo really plan to have Orochimaru demonstrate the Edo Tensei in front of this crowd?

"A jutsu that can summon immortal warriors, impervious to pain and completely loyal to the summoner! The summoning jutsu: Edo Tensei!" Danzo moved his arm towards Orochimaru and immediately shot a glare that told the Sannin to do it. Orochimaru scowled at Danzo, but quickly performed said jutsu without missing a second.

Three coffins came up out of the ground before the crowds. The lids of the coffins fell open, revealing the first two Hokages and Hiruzen Sarutobi. Everyone present gasped softly with surprise, unable to fully process what they were seeing. The First Hokage stepped out of his coffin, and clasped his hands together. A few small trees shot up out of the ground and coiled together into one thicker tree. Hashirama sprung into the air and punched straight through the tree, causing it to burst into flames once his fist hit the bottom. Tobirama performed a few hand signs and brought out a water dragon from thin air and used it to quench the flames, and attack Hashirama all at once. Hiruzen summoned a long staff and then swung it at Tobirama, taking off his arm and a chunk out of his body.

Orochimaru made a seal and caused the three Konoha ancestors to stop. Hashirama and Tobirama began to heal their wounds from the earth nearby. Their faces were blank and emotionless before they were completely patched up.

"Fighting alongside old comrades who died in the battlefield, or your ancestors, that option is now available," Danzo exclaimed. "With Edo Tensei, we have an advantage over our enemies!" The people in the streets cheered with excitement, much to the other Alliance leaders' shock. Danzo smiled again as he held his arm up to encourage the people.

"A jutsu that can summon the dead back to life," Dosu murmured in shock. "That's…I don't even know…"

"How can these people cheer for a jutsu like that," Zaku asked. Sakura simply looked on in shock and nodded wordlessly. She turned her head when she noticed her uncle trembling. Sakura looked at Higure's face, and noticed a look of restrained rage.

"Uncle Higure…are you okay…?"

"Stay here…" Higure turned around and jumped off the building into a vacant alleyway.

"If anyone wishes to support the use of this jutsu, there is are two types of voting booths all over the village; you can either vote for or against select individuals to be brought back by the Edo Tensei! You will not be in trouble or persecuted for your votes! It's all completely anonymous. Now go people of the Alliance!"

* * *

"All of you, brave men and women who have devoted your lives for this moment," A continued in his loud, booming voice, "you all will go down in history! As the men and women who took down the Alliance!" The armies roared again, applauding the Raikage. "Today, the Lands of Lightning and Water stand together to fight against the tyrannical Danzo and his allies! We will march through Alliance territory and take down Danzo first! Then we will move to Amegakure, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure and take down anyone who refuses to denounce the Alliance! The world will be at peace, and it will all be thanks to every last one of you! Brave shinobi of the Land of Sky, Kirigakure, and Kumogakure!" The entire canyon shook with cheers and screams that could be heard for miles. The Raikage raised his arm up into the air and then let out his own bestial battle-cry.

"Quite the speech," Kisame murmured from the wings behind the Union leaders.

"You'd be surprised at how well Saizo gave a speech," Tobi replied, completely covered by the shadows. "If he were alive…this Union could take down the Alliance no problem. And my plan could be set in stone for sure."

"Don't fret," Kisame said with his usual sadistic grin. "I have no doubt that your plan will succeed no matter what. And then this world of lies…will be replaced by your world of truth, right Mizukage?"

Tobi remained silent for a moment before turning to Kisame, smiling behind his mask, "Yes, yes indeed Kisame." The swordsmen giggled softly as Tobi vanished behind the shadows.

* * *

The crowd cheered one more time at the Hokage's last statement as people began to scatter. Danzo smiled and then turned around. At the other side of the Hokage's Mansion stood an enraged Higure Haruno. Danzo raised his hand to the leaders, wordlessly telling them to remain in their places before approaching the Division commander.

Orochimaru glared furiously as Danzo passed. The old fool gave away their best advantage to whatever spies could be in the village. They were open to all sorts of infiltration since they were harboring thousands of more occupants in the village than usual. The Sannin growled angrily after he figured out the reason Danzo forced him to reveal the jutsu to the world. Orochimaru knew that with that jutsu revealed to the village or whatever spies were here, _Orochimaru's_ tool became that must less efficient. The enemy would have ways to counter this jutsu now, making Orochimaru's personal jutsu less of a trump card, and just another ordinary war-asset.

"How did you like that speech," Danzo asked as he stood before Higure.

"You're not disrespecting my friends with that jutsu," Higure seethed, "Do you understand me?"

"I'm afraid Orochimaru is in charge of that jutsu, not me. If you have a problem-,"

"Orochimaru reports to you," Higure snapped. "You leave my former teammates to rest peacefully Danzo! They've lived enough of a retched life following your orders, they don't need anymore of your shit!" Danzo's eye narrowed as a smirk crossed his lips.

"Stay loyal to Konoha," Danzo ordered. Higure's eyes widened briefly as Danzo's words sunk in. "With Akatsuki's growing reputation, and your niece's infatuation with the Uzumaki boy, I realize that the possibility to go to Akatsuki is…quite appealing." Higure's eyes lit up with understanding and his face grew pale. Danzo took one more step forward, leaning in close to Higure's face with a deadly stare in his visible eye. "Stay loyal to Konoha, lead Alliance forces, and do as I say…and that specialized team I set up, the Six Paths of the Shinobi, will remain forever at peace in the afterlife. Deal?"

Higure clenched his fists as his whole body trembled with anger. His head was spinning at his predicament. The Division commander lowered his head and turned to the side, before murmuring a single venomous, bitter word, "Deal…" Higure jumped off of the roof of the mansion and headed back to Sakura and her teammates.

Sakura looked over and waved her uncle over to the roof. Higure jumped to the roof with a look of shame and defeat on his face. Dosu and Zaku looked at each other and then back at Higure. Sakura reached out and gently placed a hand on her uncle's arm, "What's wrong Uncle Higure…?" Higure lifted his head up as he sighed before smiling warily at his niece and her friends.

"Nothing," Higure replied. "Nothing at all." Sakura frowned a bit at her uncle's obvious lie. "Come on, I want to vote against this Edo Tensei thing."

"Me too, mind if I join," Dosu asked. Higure smiled and patted the boy on the shoulder.

"Not at all." Higure looked back at Zaku and Sakura, "Are you coming Sakura or are you heading back home?"

"I'll…catch up with you guys," Sakura replied. Higure nodded before he and Dosu departed. Zaku looked at Sakura, who stared at the floor with her hand over her chest.

"Okay…what's wrong with you now?"

Sakura shook her head, "I don't know…I just feel like something's really wrong with Uncle Higure…" Zaku placed his arm around Sakura's shoulder and gave her a light, supportive squeeze.

"He's a grown up, he can handle himself. If not, then we'll do our best to help him. Me, you, and Dosu, we'll all try to help him. Alright?" Sakura nodded, smiling softly at her friend.

"Thanks Zaku…" Sakura twirled out of her teammate's arm and grinned, "Come on, let's catch up with Dosu before Uncle Higure kills him for being annoying."

"Him! You know I'm the annoying one on the team!" Zaku ran towards Sakura, who then turned around and also ran to catch up with her uncle and best friend.

"Damn straight you are!" Zaku and Sakura laughed as they both hopped off the building. Higure and Dosu were nearby, waiting on the other two as they ran up towards them. Dosu smiled softly behind his mask while Higure stared at Sakura with a pained look in his eyes, and a forced smile on his face.

He'd remain silent about this burden. And he wouldn't drag Sakura into this mess, no matter what.

* * *

"The odds are against us," Yahiko stated. "But I know we'll be able to change the world! To bring a new dawn to all the countries, all the village, all of the families, and to each individual human being on this world!" The kids all started to cheer again loudly, clapping and hollering.

Deidara huffed as he smiled at the kids with admiration. Though art was the most important thing to an artist, Naruto had helped bring Deidara down to earth a bit. He respected the knucklehead's reckless, yet artistic fighting style. Deidara turned to the Akatsuki leaders and pumped his fist into the air before he cheered himself with the kids.

More heads turned around as a new source of noise rung through the room. On the other side, Hana and Itachi both started to cheer as well, joining the kids in their enthusiastic cries. Zabuza shook his head before he grabbed his sword and raised it high into the air, roaring loudly.

Slowly, more and more people began to cheer with the younger shinobi. Yahiko sighed softly, a bit aggravated at the kids. Jiraiya, Nagato, and Konan all smiled and began to applaud. Tsunade just watched with a neutral expression, thinking it was disrespectful to interrupt Yahiko, but at the same time knowing it was good to keep morale high.

Jiraiya stepped forward and patted Yahiko on the shoulder, offering to relieve the orange haired man of the spotlight. Yahiko nodded then stepped aside as Jiraiya stepped forward, "We have the best of everything in Akatsuki! We have shinobi from all corners of the world, and the best batch of ninjas anyone could ask for! From rogues from the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, to rogue bombers from Iwagakure, and anything else you could think of or ask for we've got! And it's because of all of you that I know we're going to win this!" More people started to cheer with enthusiasm at Jiraiya's speech. The kids especially started screaming and cheering at their senior's words.

"The Alliance," Jiraiya continued, "Konohagakure, Sunagakure, Amegakure, and Iwagakure…they are powerful indeed. But against us? They don't stand a chance, am I right?" All of Akatsuki roared in response. Jiraiya laughed at their reaction and beamed a happy grin at the soldiers. The Sannin stumble back suddenly, opening his eyes to look at what was pushing him aside.

Naruto stood at the edge of the makeshift stage, determined to put his own two-cents in. "The Alliance is a joke! We managed to infiltrate Konoha, in the middle of the Chunin Exams, and then escaped without a single casualty on our side!" The crowd applauded and whistled eagerly. "Akatsuki alone has two of their Jinchuriki, yours truly and Gaara of the Sand! And Akatsuki managed to overthrow the Land of Snow and it's tyrannical dictator, Doto Kazahana to put Princess Koyuki in charge! Konoha tried to get the princess first, but who was it that got her first, right under Konoha's nose?"

"AKATSUKI," the crowd screamed.

"Despite their best attempts, Akatsuki managed to liberate the Land of Snow, and make it a peaceful haven that is going to keep itself out of this war! We've given Konoha and the Alliance the middle-finger so many times now, and what have they done about it? NOTHING!" The crowd screamed, whistled, and hollered with cheer and fervor. "It's because they can't stop us," Naruto shouted in the middle of the crowd's cheering. "No matter how hard they try, the Alliance can't stop us! The Union won't stop us either! And we won't stop! Not until I beat the living hell out of Danzo! And I'll be sure to give him a good beating for each and every single one of you," Naruto panned his arm across the sea of shinobi, "I promise the Alliance will be taken down! And the Will of Fire will flourish in Konohagakure once more!"

Akatsuki all cheered loudly, some springing up into the air, and others fist-bumping or doing some form of energetic action. Naruto grinned happily and gave the peace sign to the crowd. Jiraiya laughed as he lifted the boy up and placed him on his shoulder, causing Naruto to start laughing as well.

The crowd started to chant the blonde's name, "NA-RU-TO! NA-RU-TO!" The Jinchuriki's eyes widened a bit as he scanned the crowd. Every single person he saw was chanting and screaming his name, cheering for _him_. The blonde closed his eyes and grinned his usual goofy grin.

"To the Will of Fire!"

"THE WILL OF FIRE!" Akatsuki's shouts echoed throughout the cave as they prepared for war.

* * *

**MAMMA MIA! Is it…could it be…April Fools maybe…? No…wait…IT IS! This story is finished! =D Wait…you all are probably not happy about that. Don't worry! I'll have a sequel for it sometime! I plan on making this a trilogy, like Star Wars. Ya'll like Star Wars right? Right…? Hardcore anime fans…? You like sci-fi stuff too right…?**

**But I know I left this story with a lot of questions up in the air, like ME3's ending (HA! Nother sci-fi reference), but just be patient for the sequel everyone! For the title of the sequel I'm debating between Wrath of War (WoW, not like the MMORPG) ((lots of acronyms FTW!)) or War of Fire (WoF…like Wrath of Fire, but the sequel) and I'm pretty sure for the third story it'll probably just be Will of Fire. Let me know what you all think would make the better title. Your input is valuable to meh =D**

**Until the sequel! I hope you all enjoyed the story. I know I've had a lot of fun, stress, and time put into the story. I'm sorry this story had to end, but just look forward to the sequel. Thank you to every single person who reviewed this story at some point in time. I promise I've read every review posted. And a special thank you to those who have read this story from beginning to end (and a few of you who have reread this story a couple of times D= I salute you're dedication), you all are amazing, and thank you for your time and patience if you're reading this lol. Have a wonderful day, and I hope to see you all in the sequel =)**


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